Von Verlust und Liebe
by Lady-Pyrien
Summary: Strange dreams have always plagued Ludwig, a young knight in search of a job with his older brother. On one particular journey, he decides he needs to find the girl he keeps seeing. The one with honey eyes and copper hair. The one he promised his heart to. Instead, he finds himself helping what's left of a destroyed village find refuge. Among them, there is Feliciano. GerIta-Kismet
1. Chapter 1

_mmmm in honor of finding a good stopping place with my newest inspirational wriitng partner, xXxBloody-BlossomxXx, I'm uploading the first chapter of VVuL~~ How exciting to have Kismet related work out again, right~! I'm excited~! Anyway, This story won't be as long or dramatic as Kismet, but it's lovely and you get to see Feliciano and Ludwig's story~!_

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**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter One: The Iron Cross**

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Laughter filled the air as young Ludwig made his way through the trees. He'd just barely managed to escape punishment from his father for breaking his mother's old vase. He knew he'd eventually be forced to go home and take the whooping, but for now, he'd live freely as if he'd done nothing wrong. Their family, which consisted of just him, his mother and father and his remaining older brother (he had many, but only knew of a few. The others had gone off to corners of the world or had been lost to illness).

It was normal for northern mainlander families to have multiple children, in hopes of bearing strong sons to carry on the family name and continue working and hunting. Luckily, for the Beilschmidt family, Ludwig was too young to run off and Gilbert had no interest in anything but becoming strong for his father to be proud of him. Both boys had been forced south to Illonia when their father found work.

It wasn't what the boys wanted, but they did enjoy the slightly warmer winters. It seemed being closer to the southern seas meant different climates than what they were used to.

Since they had only arrived a few weeks before, Ludwig had not had much time to explore his new homeland. They lived close to a beautiful forest and both boys were itching to explore its contents. Ludwig smiled softly to himself with satisfaction, knowing he would get to be the first.

The trees were thick and tall, but the floor of the woods were covered in dead branches and thick bushes and brush. He frowned, wishing he had worn long pants rather than shorts. Too late now. He climbed over a fallen tree and tripped several times on his way through. Hopefully his father wouldn't think to follow, lest he get in more trouble for being here.

After an hour of mindless wandering, he frowned looking around. He felt lost and the noon sun was high above him. Thirst pulled at Ludwig's throat and he licked his dry lips. There was no moisture to console the aching, chapped lips and he sighed leaning against a tree. This had to be his worst idea. If he made it out of here, he swore he'd become a better child and get in less trouble and follow ALL the rules! He wouldn't break his mom's things; he'd eat everything on his plate and wouldn't give Aster the stuff he didn't want. Ludwig promised to take better care of Aster and walk the dog like he was supposed to. "Oh! I'll even clean up after myself perfectly!" he thought.

A light singing voice brought him out of his thoughts.

"Draw a circle, that's the Earth. Draw a circle, that's the Earth. Draw a circle, that's the Earth. I am Illonian!"

Ludwig bit his lip and quickly pushed himself off the tree he was leaned against. If he was quiet, maybe he would be able to sneak up on the person that voice belonged to.

"All~ the world around us can be seen through the stroke of a single brush. And now~ we give a toast with our boots! Illo~ni~a!" he stumbled through the brush and onto a river bank. There was a young girl standing on the edge of the water, with her oddly short hair adorned with a flower ring.

Her mouth opened up and she began to sing her song again, "Hey, hey papa, could I have some wine? Hey, hey mama! Hey, hey mam-" she quickly turned and saw the blonde child before her. Her honey gold eyes widened and tears welled up.

"Who are you?" she whispered. Her hand came up to her chest and she started making her way to the edge of the trees.

"I'm not going to hurt you!" the young Beilschmidt called out. He was intrigued since this was the first person near his age he'd seen here. These Illonians were such odd creatures. Their skin was lightly tanned and their eyes were several colors he'd rarely seen up north, like her honey colored ones. And it seemed the girls didn't mind wearing their hair short. Of course, he couldn't blame her. Long hair must be truly uncomfortable in this kind of heat.

"Then what are you doing here? Oh my grandfather was right about me going out alone!" she started wailing.

Ludwig frowned and began to panic. How did you stop a little girl from crying like that? He walked over to her carefully and slowly and patted her back lightly.

"I'm sorry if I startled you … I just heard you singing and I'm lost and …" he didn't know what else to say, but she started giggling and wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"You sound funny!" his eyes widened a little and his brows knitted together.

"That's because I'm from the north land of Gartyra …" she smiled again at the Gartyrarren.

"I've never met anyone from there! I did meet this one boy from Fayldyr before, but he moved back last summer!" her dress spun around her legs as she twirled in joy.

Ludwig sighed and waited for her to stop her rambling about her big brother Francis. The rest of the afternoon was spent talking about how nice the village was and how amazing pasta was. The young Beilschmidt didn't know what pasta was, but he figured he would try it one day, just for her.

Eventually, the sun began to set over the horizon and she led him home. He took to calling her Ita, because she'd yet to give him her name. The nickname didn't faze the girl either. She just returned the favor by calling him Horoem, which confused him greatly. Where did she even come up with such a ridiculous name?

The scene changes and now Ludwig is seven. A year spent in the small village in Illonia meant the two children had become best friends. Every chance the two got, they would spend running around the trees and river playing. During the spring, Ita would take him to pick flowers and see the bunnies, which were just now coming out to play. She would sit with him and teach him to paint and draw. They would talk about how he aspired to be a great warrior who could slay dragons and other mean creatures with his mighty blade.

Summer brought quiet naps under the shade of large trees and talking time. She would tell him of her brother and how mean he was, always stuffing dirt down her undergarments. Ludwig cringed just thinking about it.

Fall was like spring. They spent the season sitting by the river, talking and watching some of the trees shed their leaves. Winter brings cold, of course, and with that, the two spend very little time together. However, when they are together, it's usually on warmer, less windy days. They spend it walking through the town with a mug of hot cider or chocolate.

It's now two years passed his arrival to the village and fall is coming to an end. Nine year old Ludwig is sitting beside his mother while she patches Gilbert's torn pants, which were ripped while he was playing ball.

His mother leaned forward to grab a new piece of cloth from her basket when a small pendant fell from her dress. A small iron cross held close with a strong woven cord dangled helplessly from her neck.

"Mutti," which is what northern mainlanders called their mothers, "what is that thing around your neck?"

She set her sewing aside and grabbed the cross with a smile, "Oh my dear Ludwig, you will find out one day, but young men who fall in love make these for their intended brides, that is, the woman they wish to spend their lives with."

"So, if you love a girl … and you want to be with her forever … you make her one of those cross thingys?"

She tucked it away again, "Yes, my sweet child. When given to the girl, she can accept your offer and you then become wed … together forever …" her smile grew warm and she rested her hand on her breast. "One day, my child, you will meet that special girl … the one you never want to part from and you'll make her the happiest."

"As if!" the two turned to see the older albino child, "I'm pretty sure, West is not the kind of guy who would fall for a girl at all~" his voice and eyes said he knew something the other two did not.

"What do you know, brother?" Ludwig stood up and glared, "I will too find a girl to marry!" the blonde child stormed up to his room.

Gilbert's laughter followed the boy as well as his mother's voice chiding the silver haired boy.

Ludwig slammed the door behind him and tears came to his eyes thinking about Ita. Is this what love felt like? Knowing there was a girl who always wanted to see you, and who never grew bored of you? He closed his eyes and imagined everything they had been through. He was always there to comfort her when she tripped and even that embarrassing time she got into the water naked with him wasn't enough to tear them apart.

He shook his head of that time. She had cried after getting redressed, so he had to go comfort her. She never did it again.

Ludwig stepped over to his desk and opened it up to find some things he was going to need. Rather than spend the next few days with Ita, he was going to make something.

The Gartyrarren sneaked into his father workshop and dug through a pile of scrapped iron and found a good sized piece.

Several weeks, swollen fingers, cuts and burns later, Ludwig sat back against the wall. He was glad his father had shown him a few things about working the metal over and it had been terribly difficult and he had been ready to give up at any moment, but Ita was worth it. Ita was the person he wanted to marry more than anyone he would ever meet, he just knew it!

He looked over the matching crosses for any mistakes and tucked them in his pocket. The boy ran back to the house and slipped into his room, hoping no one had noticed he'd sneaked to the shop again.

Winter had set in days ago and Ludwig was being forced to wait to see Ita until a later day. He sighed and moved away from his window.

This winter had been the worst imaginable for the family. Ludwig knelt beside his mother's bed and clutched her hand tightly. She smiled at him with a worn and tired smile, "My sweet Ludwig, I'm sorry … sorry that I can't watch you grow up. You're already so big! And I'm so proud. I hope you make her happy."

He looked at his mother confused, but followed her line of sight to his pocket, which had the crosses he'd made sticking out. His face turned scarlet red, "It's not … I mean … she's just a …" he shook his head, "I love her. She's perfect and cute and even though she's an absolute mess sometimes, she's always there to listen …"

His mother laughed softly, "Take good care of her," she kissed his hand, "Now go get your father for me …"

Ludwig nodded and kissed her forehead, "Okay." little did he know, that was the last time he'd see his beloved mother alive. The burial was short and Ludwig's toes and fingers were frozen by the time they made it back inside. Gilbert sadly made his way to his room and their father disappeared, most likely going to drink himself into a stupor.

Sure enough, neither boy saw their father for weeks. Spring was trying to edge its way into the village, but the Beilschmidt family still felt cold. One pretty, warm day, Gilbert rushed into Ludwig's room, "West. Pack your things. You and I are heading back north."

"Why?" Ludwig sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes.

Gilbert sighed, "Just do it. We're leaving in about two hours so pack what you can." the albino closed the door and left Ludwig to panic.

"But Ita!" he rushed to throw some clothes and books into a bag before making sure he had the crosses in his pocket. He had to find her before it was too late. He already hadn't seen her in nearly three months.

The trip was quick, but it felt like an eternity. He could only hope she had not forgotten him and would be waiting there with a smile on her lips.

He came to the water's edge and his eyes searched frantically for her. She was not there, nor was there any sign of her being there. Tears pricked his eyes and he chewed his lip, wondering if he should write a note in the sand and leave the cross for her to find. He would explain that he would come back for her.

After locating a sharp stick, he began to scratch into the earth.

"Horoem?" his eyes widened and he'd never been so happy to hear that nickname.

"Ita!" he turned to see her. She'd grown an inch or two since he'd seen her last. The same pure white dress she'd always worn, hugged her tightly, showing that she would probably need to get a new one made for her, "I'm so happy to see you! I'm so sorry I haven't been around so much … I was busy and then winter and my mutti …"

She smiled, tears streaming down her face. The girl tackled Ludwig to the ground and hugged him tightly, "I thought you hated me …" she cried.

"Never!" he frowned, "I could never hate you!" he stood up and pulled out the crosses and slipped one over his head, "Mutti said you give these to someone special … like a promise you can never break. When a man cares about someone a lot, he's supposed to make this in hopes that they will one day get married and never have to be apart again." he frowned, "Ita, I have to go away for a while. I'm going back up north, but I promise I'll come back to you!" his face became red, "I love you …" he whispered, leaning his forehead to hers.

Tears streaked her face, "But … I don't want you to go! You can't leave me!" he muttered that he had to, but held up the necklace, "You'll wait for me, right?" she nodded vigorously at his question. Ludwig smiled happily and slipped the necklace over her head. He held onto the cord, lingering in the happy moment. Ita would forever be his! She picked up the cross and smiled, "I love you, too …"

He looked up and smiled happily, "Is this what being married is like?" he asked.

Ita shrugged, "I guess so, except one thing!" he looked at her confused, "You can now kiss the bride!"

Ludwig blushed a deep red again, but leaned forward and captured her lips in a soft, tentative kiss. He pulled away and she smiled.

"I'll be waiting for you! When you get back, I'll even make you some sweet treats and stuff!"

Ludwig nodded and tucked his necklace away, "I'll be back, I swear it!" tears streamed both of their faces as he ran back to meet his brother.

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Ludwig shot up in his bed and groaned at his headache. This was the third time this month he'd had that strange dream about the girl. He gripped at his neck and found the necklace. The girl in his dream always received one from him.

"West! You awake?" Gilbert rolled over in his make shift blanket bed.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry if I woke you brother. I just had that dream again."

"Again?" Gilbert sat up and rubbed his eyes.

Ludwig nodded, "Something tells me she's real and not just a figment of my imagination. Every time the dream comes it gets more detailed. This time I saw the face of the woman, the one who tells me about the iron cross." the nineteen year old rubbed at his head, "Long blonde hair and blue eyes. She had a round face and a small birth mark beside her left eye."

Gilbert's eyes glazed over sadly, "West … that's our mother. You don't remember her, do you?"

The blonde growled lightly. All his memories were dated back to when he was thirteen and had woken in a medical home. Apparently he'd been injured badly in a fight against a Naga, a creature with the head of a human and the body of a snake. Such creatures could be very deadly, especially when they could shift between human form and that of any sized snake smaller than their body.

Gilbert tried to fill him in on missing memories, such as living in Illonia for a short time, where they lost their mother and father, but it had been for naught. Ludwig remembered nothing but his own name and the fighting skills he'd acquired. He'd accepted the fact that Gilbert was his brother, but still did not remember anything about him from before he'd awoken.

"West … you think …" he frowned, "You think maybe these are you memories coming back? I mean, the doctor said they might come back one day, right?"

"Why would it be the same handful of memories, though? It makes no sense, brother."

"She's real." Gilbert muttered.

Ludwig looked at him, "Our mother? I know." what had gotten into Gilbert.

"No … the little girl from you dreams. I never met her … but I overheard a conversation you had with mutti once. I think … I think you gave the other cross to the girl. Who knows, maybe if you find her, you'll get your memories back." the albino laughed heartily before settling back into his makeshift bed, "Anyway, we'll be passing the northern border of Illonia to-morrow, so you'd best get some sleep. We still have a long way to go before we reach Sverran."

Ludwig nodded, but a plan was soon forming in the fighter's head. What if Gilbert was right? What if he should return to the village, maybe see if she really did exist? He knew, based on traditions he'd learned, that a man only wore this cross when he was either married or had promised to marry, which meant someone had to have the matching piece. What better place to start than the village in his dream?

He relayed his plans to his brother as they walked the next morning.

"You sure about this West? I mean, I've heard a lot of dragons and naga have been springing up down there because the climate's getting warmer."

Ludwig nodded, "Yeah. I know I can handle myself."

Gilbert nodded, "Okay. I'll meet you in the Sverran capital. Just don't make me have to come save your ass, West." he pulled his little brother into a tight hug.

The blonde shoved him away and smiled softly, "I will be fine, brother." and with that the two parted ways.

Ludwig had made it to the edge of a town after a few weeks of traveling, and was licking his lips, staring as the visible heat rising off the ground. This looked familiar to him, so it must be it.

As he walked through, he noticed many people giving him strange looks. He had expected this. This was the typical treatment he and Gil got every time the entered a village. People seemed to always see his sword first before the man. He ignored the gaze and ran a finger through his slicked hair. The further into the village he walked, the worse it became. Houses and shops were either partially or completely burned down. Trash and debris lined the streets and even blocked some pathways. People were still hiding indoors, rarely willing to walk outside.

This was troubling. He hated that they were afraid to leave their own shops and homes. This was definitely not the same kind of people from his dream, but then again, dragons hadn't inhabited this area before.

"Ve~! Help me!" Ludwig had learned never to turn down a cry for help so he pulled his blade and ran toward the screaming voice, leaping over a pile of fallen trees, "Get away!" blue eyes fell upon a young man lying in the street waving a white flag rapidly. A naga stood before him.

"Jussst come with me and nothing bad will happen to you." the snake like creature hissed.

"Do you serve pasta?" he lowered the flag. Ludwig frowned. How stupidly dense could someone be? The snake would only tear him apart for her children or something.

"Yesss, we ssserve lotsss of passsta!" the snake grinned.

Ludwig glared and rushed over, stepping in front of the man. "Get out of here! She's lying to you!"

"You mean there's no pasta?" tears welled up in the corner of his eyes. Ludwig raised a brow and shook his head before returning his attention to the naga before him. The thing hissed angrily, obviously mad she wouldn't get her meal as easy.

"You are going to pay for that!" her face slowly changed from that of a human woman's into a large python's head. The snake reared back and launched its fanged face at him. Ludwig hated these creatures with a passion and had become his favorite to kill. His blade rose to the challenge and caught her in midair, slicing down her side. The now dead naga hit the ground and Ludwig moved quickly to slice her head off, just in case she wasn't actually dead.

"Ve~! My hero!" the man stood up and wrapped his arms tightly around Ludwig's neck, "That mean creature has been giving us a ton of trouble lately and you got rid of her!"

"Oh gods, Feliciano! Are you okay?" a woman with long light brown hair ran up, holding her dress up off of her legs so she could run raster to the man.

"I am now that he's here! He saved me from the naga, big sister!" she smiled warmly and pulled Feliciano into her arms.

"I was so worried that that thing would take you away and hurt you!" her piercing gaze felt on Ludwig and began scrutinizing him, "Thank you for saving my Feli."

"Um … no problem … it's what I do."

She tilted her head, "Your accent, you're from up north, right?"

The blonde Beilschmidt nodded, "Yeah, my brother and I lived there until recently."

The woman smiled, "My ex-husband is from the north, not as far as you, I'm sure, but still. I'm Elizaveta Hédévary." she said, holding out her hand.

Ludwig took it, still confused by the strange woman. She was strangely familiar. "I'm grateful that you saved my little Feli, why don't you come back to my ex-husband's house and we'll get you fed and cleaned up. The man nodded and followed them back to a rather large house. Part of it was broken and burned up, but had been boarded up to separate it from the rest of the house.

"I'm guessing there are dragon problems here?"

Elizaveta nodded, "Unfortunately, they came about in the last several years and started breeding. It has been terrible. And there's naga to the west and north, so we're all stuck here, really."

Feliciano bit his lip sadly and placed a hand on his chest, "Yeah … we're stuck here."

The woman placed a hand on his shoulder, "You're the first person in this village in a long time. Most people don't make it passed the naga defenses." Ludwig nodded, remembering a few hours ago, he'd cut through at least five before the rest would leave him alone to travel to the village.

"They were a handful." he growled, walking into the building behind Elizaveta and Feliciano.

"Roderich, dear, we have company." a man walked into the room and nodded lightly. He then turned and took his cup into a different room that suddenly filled with music.

"Ve~! I love this song!" the man ran off down the hall to go listen to it.

"Sorry about him, he's a very sweet and hyper young man. We saved him and his brother from a terrible fate. They were to be sold off when their grandfather died, but Roderich managed to buy them. We could only afford to keep Feliciano so his brother was sold to a wealthy family in the north." she got a little quiet, "However … the boy ran away before he made it to his destination and we haven't heard from him since. I haven't told Feliciano, so please … don't mention anything."

Ludwig nodded and frowned lightly. Just the thought of one person owning another angered him. He accepted her offer to let him wash his face and then join her in the study for a late lunch.

He slowly walked down the corridor and into a small room. There was a large basin filled with water and rose petals. The Beilschmidt washed his face and hands and dried off on the small hand towel. The house was truly lovely, with expensive looking decorations lining each corner and wall. Even the hall way was filled with crystal vases that looked like the money they could fetch would feed an army.

Elizaveta was sitting in the study humming softly to the music floating around the house, "I'm sorry if it seems Roderich is being rude, but when it comes time for his music, he can become a little disgruntled." she poured a small cup, "Try this. It's a rare drink imported from the deep forests of South Alverynia."

Ludwig picked up the cup and his eyes widened at the strong, but alluring scent that came off the cup.

"It's better with some milk and sugar," she stirred a little bit into her cup before taking a sip.

He followed suit and mixed a little of each into the cup before sipping at it. The drink was really unique, slightly bitter but good. It burned his tongue a little.

"Good, right?" he nodded and continued sipping at the drink. The flavor was strong. He personally preferred his brother's brew over this, but it would make do for now.

Elizaveta's eyes fixed themselves outside of the window, "Pardon if I'm not exactly … making good company … we've just been under terrible stress as of late …"

Ludwig nodded, "I've heard some things about this land becoming overridden with dragons and naga?"

She nodded and set her cup down, "It's much too dangerous to stay but far too dangerous to travel away. We're all doomed here." she smiled sadly, "I only want what's best for Feliciano. He's especially young to be dying like this."

The blond man nodded. Elizaveta gave him a room for the night and Ludwig collapsed on the bed, letting his exhaustion take over him. He just hoped tonight he was too tired to dream.

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**TBC**

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_Aaaaand there you have it :33 the first chapter of VVuL~~_

_~Lady Pyrien_


	2. Chapter 2

_Mmm, Thank you guys for your support and love and reviews! I know how many of you waited for this story and I'm sorry about that... I just find Germany and Italy very difficult character for me to write... SOOO with that said, this story may not be as good as anything SpaMano I write because I have those characters down pact, these ones... not so much ... but I tried! I really did .. so... let me know what you guys think!_

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**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Two: Recognition**

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When he awoke the next morning he was face to face with the auburn haired man he'd saved the day before. Feliciano was sound asleep, lying in the bed.

"Ah! What the hell?" Ludwig leaped out of the bed, "What the hell are you doing in my bed?"

Feliciano woke up and rubbed his eyes, "Ve~? Oh! Sorry … I had a bad dream last night and found your room!" he laughed lightly resting his head on his knees.

"I don't care! Get out of here!" the Illonian threw the blanket off himself and took off crying and yelling, "Please don't hurt me!"

Ludwig only rolled his eyes and picked up his discarded clothes from the floor and smoothing them out of the bed. He made his way over to the dresser and poured water from the glass pitcher into the water basin. After cleaning his face and fixing his hair, he redressed and stepped out into the kitchen. Feliciano looked up from his plate of food and smiled lightly, probably already over the scare that morning.

"Hello!"

Ludwig waved back in response but quirked an eyebrow at a tiny little flaw in how Feliciano was dressed.

Elizaveta walked in and laughed, "Oh my! Feli, dear, you forgot your pants again!"

"Ve~?" the auburn haired Illonia looked down at his underwear and smiled, "I did! Didn't I?" he laughed and walked from the kitchen.

"Is he always like this?" Ludwig shook his head, looking down at the food Elizaveta placed before him.

The woman laughed lightly, "Yes, he is. He's a free spirit … who sometimes forgets his pants." she served her own plate, "I heard some commotion, is everything alright?"

He nodded, "Oh, um yes. I woke up and he was in my bed … I … don't suppose that's normal for him, is it?" the man bit into the food.

"Well, not really. He must really have taken a liking to you because he only does that when he's frightened and usually he comes to my bed, never a stranger's." she chuckled with a dark blush spreading over her cheeks, "Anyway, what are your plans now that you're here?"

It was Ludwig's turn to blush and shift uncomfortably in his seat, "Actually, I came for a … dream …"

"A dream?" her face was that of confusion.

"Yes, a dream I've had many times over the course of my life. It's a little shifty and I usually don't remember much, but I do remember this village and a young girl I was always with.

"We made a promise, in the dream, to be together one day. This is embarrassing," he muttered covering his face, "I honestly just came to see if she was real. If she is, then that means my dreams are just bits of memory I've lost trying to resurface."

"Sounds so romantic~!" she gushed, "You say you've lost your memory?" Elizaveta brought her glass to her lips and sipped.

"When I was younger, I had been training with my brother and got into a nasty fight, and was knocked unconscious. When I awoke, I was blank. I didn't know who I was, where I was, or even who my brother was. Few memories have come back, but I hold onto the few that do."

The woman smiled sadly, "I hope you find her and your memories."

He only nodded and continued eating. Feliciano came back in, sporting pants, and sat down to eat.

"Ve~ big sister Elizaveta, are we still going to the market today?"

Elizaveta nodded, "I still have to pick up a few things that I couldn't get yesterday. Ludwig, dear, would you like to join us? It might be nice to have a little protection while in town."

The Gartyrarren thought it over for a moment and sighed, "I will."

She clapped her hands together and smiled, "Wonderful~!"

After breakfast passed, she led them into the town square. Ludwig made sure to keep a close eye on the two, particularly Feliciano who radiated an aura of doom. The Gartyrarren figured the happy-go-lucky Illonian was always in need of protection. Even when they met, it seemed all he could do was get into trouble.

Feliciano followed closely behind Ludwig, worriedly looking around and jumping at every startling noise.

"Ve!" the Illonian latched onto Ludwig's arm, tears appearing in the corner of his eyes, "The streets are scary quiet!"

"Quiet is good, you know? Not everything has to be loud and annoying." Ludwig hoped he would catch his drift, but unfortunately for him, it flew over Feliciano's head.

"Ve~?" he tilted his head in confusion and Ludwig shook his head, wanting to just drop it. It was probably better that way. Feliciano seemed like a very sensitive person.

Elizaveta stopped in a store, but Feliciano's attention seemed focused on something else completely. He 've'd' and took off down the street towards a different shop.

"Damn it!" Ludwig growled and chased after him. The silence of the city was stranger than before. There was a light breeze, slightly warm and calming, yet Ludwig couldn't help but feel the unsettling chill in the air.

He finally caught up with Feliciano, who had slipped inside the shop and was looking at the sweets collection. Ludwig frowned and opened the door.

"-home, Feliciano. I fear for today … All of us do." the shop owner looked up and frowned, warily, "I've not seen you around … where you from?" her voice was sharp and angry, much different from the way she spoke with Feliciano.

"I'm from up north, just come looking for someone, that's all." Ludwig spoke softly, carefully walking over to Feliciano.

"Well, I'm sure you'll do fine without Feli, now please leave."

"I came here with him. Come on. Elizaveta is waiting for us." he held out his hand to Feliciano, but the woman grabbed Feliciano's arm.

"Do you know him?"

Feliciano nodded and smiled, "Yeah! He saved my life!" he pulled away from the woman and ran over to Ludwig, "Where's big sister Elizaveta at?"

Ludwig frowned, "Outside."

The two of them made their way into the streets, where Elizaveta was talking to a shop owner at their door. The shop owner looked up and frowned seeing Ludwig, the stranger.

Elizaveta frowned lightly, "I'm sorry, Ludwig dear, it seems the people are being superstitious of a stranger in the village. As I've said before, we don't get any around here at all. They're afraid of the man strong enough to slip passed the naga surrounding this place."

Ludwig nodded, "I'm used to it. I had passed through a few villages before this one … all the same …"

She smiled, "Well, you can't blame us … we have heard rumors of refugee camps for Illonians in Sverran, but as I've said before, we can't leave and the Sverran troops completely overlooked our small village."

The Gartyrarren thought over what she said, but his thought process was cut short by an angry roar. He knew that sound well and looked up to see an adolescent dragon landing in the square. It bared its teeth angrily and let out another low growl.

No one was in the streets so the dragon was being denied a meal … that is … until it spotted the three standing just off to the side of the street. The huge lizard bared its teeth at them and began its movement towards them.

Feliciano yelped in fear and jumped behind Ludwig, clutching onto his shirt tightly, "Ve~! Save me!"

Ludwig growled and drew his sword, preparing for the battle ahead of him. It wouldn't be as easy as usual since Gilbert was not beside him. However, this dragon was young enough to be taken out quickly and efficiently by Ludwig alone.

It took a step forward and Ludwig challenged it, causing the dragon to rear back. The Gartyrarren pushed Feliciano into Elizaveta's arms, "Get under cover!"

She nodded and dragged Feliciano away from the battle, just as the dragon let loose a torrent of its fiery breath. Ludwig rolled away from the jet of flame and dodged a swing from its tail. The tail hit a building and people inside began screaming in fear.

The dragon's attention went straight to the building and Ludwig took the advantage he'd been given to rush his blade into the dragon's ribs. The monster let loose a loud, pained cry.

The Gartyrarren knight was proud to know a secret to fighting them. His blade, which he had forged by an elven tribe near his home, was built to pierce the hard scales of dragons and naga alike.

He jumped back, avoiding the blood that could kill him alone and jumped over the swinging tail, before slicing into the dragon again. The thing hissed in pain and in a last form of defense shot jets of fire in all directions. Ludwig grinned in triumph and grabbed a fire retardant cloth to clean his blade of the scalding blood. The sword was tucked back into its sheath and he was tackled to the ground.

"Ve~! You were amazing Luddy!"

"Luddy?" Ludwig glared, "What the … get off of me!" he pushed Feliciano up and dusted his pants of the dust. People slowly began to pour into the streets to look upon the fallen dragon. Then their eyes rose to Ludwig.

"Sir Knight … how can we repay you …?" an old man asked, walking up to Ludwig.

Ludwig frowned, "Oh, no need to worry about payment or anything … I'm just passing through."

The old man smiled warmly, "But we must pay you for your services for us!"

The knight sighed. They obviously were going to give him something for slaying the dragon, whether he liked it or not. He thought for a moment. Obviously, these people were going to be weighing heavily on his mind while he searched for 'Ita' and he'd rather not be guilty about letting anyone die when he had a chance to help them, "Fine. If you really want to pay me back, you'll let me escort you to a refugee camp in Sverran. I'll take care of dragons and naga, you keep together and find a safe place. Sverran troops have actually been cleaning out Illonia for some time now, but I'm afraid this village may not last until they come this way." he frowned, knowing he'd just have to come back in search of his fiancée … if such a person even existed.

He received stares from everyone and the man smiled, joy in his eyes, "You would do that for us?"

Ludwig nodded, "It's my duty as a knight of Gartyra to make sure no man, woman, or child is injured or killed when I have the power to save them. I ask for nothing in return for this deed, only that you take this seriously and remain out of danger as much as possible while we head that way." he crossed his arms, "Pack lightly, only very important things. My brother is already in Sverran waiting for me at the capitol, which is where we'll head."

The man turned to the people, "Spread the word, we're finally getting out of here!"

Feliciano smiled brightly, "I don't want to go to Sverran, though … I want to go north where big brother is~!"

Elizaveta bit her lip, "After we get safe, I'll take you to see your brother, okay?"

Feliciano frowned, but nodded, "Okay, big sister …"

Ludwig raised his brow and as Feliciano skipped forward, he stepped beside Elizaveta, "You said his brother was gone."

"He is … every time Feliciano has asked to go visit, I have to make up an excuse …" she sighed, "The naga have been my excuse for a little while now, but with us being able to leave Illonia … I'm not so sure I'll be able to stop him from going north to find a brother who in all likelihood is dead. The man who bought him lost him in the middle of nowhere and the area is surrounded by demonic little creature that would have ripped the boy apart …" she had tears spilling onto her cheeks and her voice became a whisper.

"I can't tell Feliciano that. It would destroy him. His brother is the only family he has … or had …

"I blame myself … I should have worked with him more … helped him learn better … but Roderich grew tired of him and sold him." Ludwig frowned.

"You're wrong … he should know that his brother is dead." Ludwig sighed, "He will find out when he goes north that his brother never made it there, anyway."

Elizaveta glared lightly at Ludwig, "If you think it's so easy, you tell him. But don't come crying to me when you watch his world shatter around him. If that happens, I will beat the hell out of you with my skillet and it will not be pretty."

The Gartyrarren rolled his eyes. It wasn't his job to tell Feliciano anything like that, but if she continued to refuse, then he would.

The rest of the walk was silent, minus the happy chatter coming from the seventeen year old Illonian.

Back at the house, Feliciano packed his bag quickly and happily. He couldn't believe they were finally going to leave Illonia! He would miss it. It was his home. But it was too dangerous now and he wanted to see his brother!

He smiled again and picked up the small painting he kept on his bedside table of him and Lovino. They were really young in the painting and it was honestly not as good as it could be (since he'd painted it himself one night when he was six). He held it close for a minute and tucked it away inside the bag. He couldn't wait to see Lovi~!

When he finished packing he flung the bag over his shoulder to find Luddy. The blonde man was sitting in the den, reading over a book. There were words he didn't understand in it and he smiled to himself, "Luddy? Ve~"

"Feliciano?" the man looked up.

Feliciano froze. He hadn't seen such beautiful blue eyes in such a very long time. Since before his grandfather died. He found himself lost in his memories and his hand reached up to his chest, pressing the cold metal to his skin.

"Um … are you okay, Feliciano?" Ludwig shook Feliciano from his daydreaming and Feliciano looked at him.

"Oh … uh … yeah! Sorry, I was just wanting to know when we would be leaving~!"

The knight nodded, "Yes, I suppose here in a little bit everyone should be ready and we'll head out. I'd like to get as far away from this village as possible before we set up a camp."

Feliciano smiled again and sat down, "That's good~! Do we have to go to Sverran?"

Ludwig gave him an odd look, "Why do you ask?"

"Everyone I've ever loved went to the north~ I want to go to find them~" he laughed.

The knight bit his lip, "Feliciano … there's something you should know …"

"Ve~? What's that, Luddy?" their eyes met and Ludwig frowned. There was too much innocence in them. So much life and happiness love and joy … so little pain and suffering. Unlike Ludwig's eyes. He knew his were almost empty pools of blue. And what little that was there was pain and hardship. He had spent what six years he remembered devoted to training and knighthood.

The only hope of making him full again was locked away in his memory and the key was missing its matching half.

He sighed, "Never mind. I'll tell you another time."

Feliciano smiled and nodded, "Okay, Luddy~!"

Roderich was … familiar … just like Elizaveta … he hadn't noticed it the day before when he'd caught a glimpse of him, but now … there was something about the man.

"Ludwig? Ludwig Beilschmidt?" the man looked at him.

"I know you?" he knew he was familiar, but he still couldn't place from where he knew him. It was most likely from before his memory loss.

"Wait! Beilschmidt?" Elizaveta looked at Ludwig, "Oh! Ludwig! Is that really you? It's been so long! At least ten or eleven years!" she ran over and hugged the confused man, "I knew you looked familiar, but I never thought I would see you again!"

Roderich stepped forward, "How is that ass brother of yours?"

"I'm terribly sorry … but … I don't know either of you …" Ludwig frowned.

Elizaveta stepped back, "Oh! I'm so sorry … you just look a lot like a boy I used to live with when I was younger … his name was Ludwig Beilschmidt too."

"Yes, he was a cousin of mine." Roderich stated, "He had an ass brother named Gilbert."

Ludwig felt a headache coursing through his head as images of a young 'boy' that lived with him when he was younger and a young rich boy.

He clutched his head and stumbled back.

"Ludwig?"

The man slid down a wall to the ground. He felt Elizaveta's hand on his shoulder, "Ludwig, are you going to be okay?"

"No … I'm not … I don't know who you are because I can't remember …" her eyes widened.

"That's right … you did say something about that …" she smiled sadly, "You really are little Ludwig …"

His head throbbed in pain as images that made little sense came to him, but slowly faded again. Elizaveta grinned, "Wait … you're Ludwig Beilschmidt … and … that means you lived here once … you said so yourself … oh!" her eyes darted to Feliciano, whom was kneeling worriedly in front of Ludwig, "Oh!" she squealed and stood up, confusing Ludwig.

"Ve~ don't mind big sister … she's usually like this~" Feliciano laughed and stood up. Ludwig was still confused as Elizaveta covered her face as it lit up red.

He sighed, wondering if it was still a good idea to travel with these people to Sverran.

* * *

**TBC**

* * *

_mmmmm sooo yeah :33 _

_~Lady Pyrien_


	3. Chapter 3

_fjkfdalrieargaj :33 I dunno, I don't really have anything to say except thank you to my readers~_

_omg, editing this chapter and freaking Eisamkeit came on D'X_

* * *

**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Three : Unexpected Snowstorm**

* * *

Elizaveta refused to talk to Ludwig or Feliciano at all, only blushing and smiling, as they gathered the townspeople in the market to head out. Ludwig was surprised to find that there weren't many more people than he's seen earlier. Maybe thirty total, if you counted the few children he saw.

He cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the men and women from the village, "I have a few rules before we head out. It will take about a week to get to the first few refugee camps in Sverran. I will be continuing on to the capital and will still escort those wishing to go that far. However, you must stick together as this group. There is safety in numbers and I'm not going to abandon the larger group to save you if you happen to get in trouble.

"If I give an order, you must follow it. It will be for the safety of every one. Those of you who are decent hunters will need to help gather food along the way, but don't get separated or lost.

"If you spot anything dangerous. Stay away and find me immediately. That's all. These are for your safety and you should respect them and follow them. Like I said: it's one week until the first camp."

And with that they were off. He led the way and luckily the naga knew better than to take him on again. However, that wouldn't always be the case. The further they got away from the village, the far worse things were going to get.

Ludwig spent the next hour pushing up north, avoiding some of the spots he'd had trouble with on his way in. He wiped sweat from his brow and looked on the path ahead of him. The burned villages and destroyed towns he had passed coming in were still littering the horizon. He frowned sadly, wondering if his supposed fiancée was even alive still. Was she safe? Was she still somewhere else in danger?

His eyes turned to the Illonian village following him to safety. Would it be too late if he saved them and went back for her? He shook away the thoughts and the memories of the little girl in a white dress and pushed on.

The peace didn't last, as expected. On the edges of the little forest they were passing, there were four huge naga, ready to pounce their prey. Ludwig drew his blade and made a hand motion to another man to warn the rest of the group.

Women and children … and Feliciano … huddled together with a few men to protect them as Ludwig led a group of farm hands and other able bodied fighters against the snake creatures slithering at them. He raised his blade and brought it down.

It clashed with a sharp weapon the naga was using as his defense. Sparks flew and Ludwig growled, swinging lower. The naga had very little time to react as the blade sliced through her underbelly. She fell and he turned to help out with one that had slipped passed the fighting group. He fell that one as well and turned back to the rest of the fighting men to see they had succeeded at killing them as well. Blood stained the ground and Ludwig sighed in both relief and fear.

This had only been the tip of the iceberg. He knew well that most of the main roads were crawling with things like them and one would not survive traveling that way for long. There had to be a better way to get to Sverran. The quickest way was obviously the worst possible choice. Ludwig waited as the rest of the group made sure everyone was accounted for and fine, while he searched the terrain for an answer.

His eyes landed on the northern mountain range. It was a two day walk through the thick woods, but it was far enough off the beaten path that the worst they would have to deal with were possibly wolves and possibly cockatrices.

"We're heading that way." he stated, earning surprised looks from the grouped people.

One man stepped forward, "What do you mean?"

Ludwig pointed to the road ahead of them, towards the scattered bodies of the few naga. "Those are on this road because they knew people like us are trying to reach Sverran where the king has a barrier up to protect his kingdom. They want meals and those meals are trying to escape.

"Logically, if we want to get out of here with as many, hopefully all, of us as possible, we must stray from the path they expect us to take. There will be dangers up toward the mountain range as well, but I know of the perfect path to take to get us through there and around to Sverran as possible."

Feliciano 've'd' and ran up to Ludwig, smile on his face, "I trust you!"

Ludwig frowned slightly, "As I said before, if you want me to do this for you, you must listen precisely to what I say." he began walking into the trees, his boots tromping down upon the tall grass. Hesitantly, the group followed him into the woods. The air was cool already, but as they headed up the small, barely used mountain trails, the air steadily grew colder and colder.

Extra clothing was added to the people who needed it. It was already bad enough that it was barely the beginning of spring without them ascending higher where it was getting colder. Ludwig was used to colder weather, so this didn't bother him as much as it seemed to bother the Illonians.

As the sun began setting over the western part of the mountain range, Ludwig decided it was time to finally set up camp.

"I'll take first watch." he explained to a few others of the fighting men, "Then I will wake one of you and the process will continue until sunrise, not a moment later."

The men agreed and lay down to sleep. Ludwig leaned against a tree and looked out to the small sea of people who were settling down to sleep. Elizaveta laid out a small blanket and motioned for Feliciano to join her, but Feliciano smiled, whispered something to her and ran over to Ludwig.

"Ve … come sleep next to us?" he asked, his gold eyes lighting up with hope.

Ludwig frowned, "I'm taking first watch, Feliciano."

He saw the confusion in the Illonian's eyes, "Oh … um …"

"It means I'm protecting you all while you sleep." he explained, turning away from the young man to actually do his job.

"Then I'll take watch with you~!" he smiled.

Ludwig sighed and nodded, deciding to give in quickly. Silence fell over them for a few moments as the sun completely disappeared over the mountains. The Gartyrarren man allowed himself to sit down at the base of the tree. Feliciano sat down as well, taking the time to look up at the stars, partially blocked by clouds.

"Luddy, do you think I'll ever see my brother again?"

The blonde frowned lightly, "I don't really know. And Luddy?"

Feliciano smiled, "You're my friend now and friends call each other nicknames~ you can call me Feli like everyone else does!" he smiled brightly, rolling his head to the side to look at Ludwig.

"Friends?" a light blush crept into his cheeks and he smiled lightly, "I've never had friends before." it was true. All he'd ever had was his brother and his sword and the images of a forgotten Illonian girl in his dreams.

"You've never had friends before?" the auburn haired man frowned, "How is that even possible? Everyone has at least one friend!"

"Well I didn't." Ludwig looked away, towards the sleeping camp.

Feliciano laid his head on Ludwig's shoulder and closed his eyes, "Now you do, and we'll be best friends forever!"

Ludwig looked at the young man like he was insane, but softly smiled. Even if he was a little stupid, or silly, or downright a doom magnet, he was still sweet in the heart.

He looked at the Illonian, who was dozing on his shoulder and silently wondered if his fiancée was anything like this Illonian. Ludwig frowned. If she was, he feared that he would be too stiff for her. However … if she was anything like Feliciano, she was surely a good person who would love to befriend him for heavens know why.

Morning came, after a long, rough night and Ludwig sleepily led the group further up the mountain trail, happy they had yet to run into anything bad. Hopefully, he had chosen a good path and they would not have to deal with such things.

Ludwig felt a vein popping on the back of his neck when Feliciano decided that instead of traveling beside Elizaveta and Roderich, he would tag along at the front of the group with his new best friend. Unfortunately, he wasn't very good at keeping up.

"Slow down some, Luddy! Ve …" he gasped, trying to keep up with Ludwig's brisk pace.

The man turned and glared, "Catch up! You need to learn to walk faster!"

Feliciano pouted and finally picked up his pace, but it just wasn't fast enough. Ludwig sighed and slowed down a bit for him, "You're going to have to learn sooner or later."

"Later is fine with me~" Feliciano smiled brightly, locking his arm with Ludwig's. The blonde blushed lightly, but ignored it for the time being.

Days passed. With the exception of the occasional wolf or naga, the path had been a proper clear one.

There was only one small, reoccurring problem: the snow. The Illonians seemed unused to the thick blankets of snow that piled up high on the mountain tops. The winds were below freezing and the air was thin. People were getting sick quickly and Ludwig knew they were running low on time.

In was barely noon when the storm hit. Ludwig found there was nothing he could do when the winds picked up and no one could see a thing in front of them. Luckily, the man found a cave and forced everyone inside. They huddled together for warmth and Ludwig sighed. There was nothing they could do until the storm stopped.

"Feli?" he heard Elizaveta mutter. He turned his blue eyes to the woman wandering around the group, "Has anyone seen Feli?" her voice was becoming more frantic as a chorus of 'nos' rang out from every one she asked. Ludwig frowned and without thinking, he grabbed up his pack and ran back out into the ice storm.

The blizzard like snow storm raged around him as he backtracked the way they had come for any sign of Feliciano. Why hadn't anyone noticed the young man's disappearance? He silently cursed that he, too, had not noticed his tag-a-long clutching tightly to his arm anymore.

He shielded his eyes and looked around the snow covered trees and rocks for something, anything, that would tell him where Feliciano had gone off to. Luckily, the man spotted a torn piece of blue fabric on a nearby tree, the same fabric that Feliciano's jacket was made of. He snatched up the piece of cloth and ran down the slightly steep slope to where he saw a partially snow covered lump.

Ludwig dropped to his knees and rolled the lump over. Feliciano was unconscious. His lashes were frozen and lined with snow and his lips were turning blue.

The Gartyrarren picked him up and began dragging him through the thick snow and impossible to see through storm. He groaned as Feliciano's dead weight was becoming too much. He dropped to his knees again and turned to the Illonian.

"Feliciano! Wake up!" he pleaded. If he could just get him to wake up, maybe he could encourage him to walk back to the cave, but no such luck. There had to be another way for them to get to safety. With the winds blowing as hard as they were, he could never carry Feliciano all the way back to the save, nor would they survive out in the open like this.

He growled to himself and picked Feliciano back up, continuing his trek through the thick snow. Ludwig didn't make it far before he collapsed again. His head was hurting and he couldn't feel his toes or fingers anymore. How long had he been out in the storm? Was there any hope now?

His eyes scanned the entirely white terrain and he frowned seeing something unusual. A mountain goat was bleating from a small opening in the snow. It was a long shot, but he had to at least get them to some sort of safety. His fingers dug into the fabric of Feliciano's coat and he dragged him through the snow, startling the mountain goat, who took off into the distance.

Ludwig pulled Feliciano into the opening to find it was a small cave, perfect for three of four people. He silently thanked the heavens for the good luck and set Feliciano up against the wall while he pulled his pack off of his back. With trembling, numb fingers, the man managed to undo the straps and pull out a thick blanket. He grabbed something small to eat and threw the blanket over him and Feliciano, hoping the younger of the two survived the night.

He carefully ate up the food and watched as the entrance to the small cave was filled up with snow.

Ludwig must have sat against the wall for only a few minutes, sleepily trying to keep himself awake. He was far warmer than he was when they first made it into the cave, his fingers, toes and face could all be felt, but he was worried that Feliciano still felt cold against his leg.

In his studies of survival, he learned that freezing people were supposed to survive off of body heat. He licked his lips, blushing and laid down on the ground next to Feliciano and pulled him close, tightly wrapping his arms around the smaller frame.

In the dim light, Ludwig made note that Feliciano's lips were no longer blue, but slowly returning to their former peachy color. His cheeks were still colorless and he looked as though he might be dead. Ludwig frowned and placed his lips to Feliciano's neck in search of his pulse. It was faint against his lips, but it was there.

He sighed in relief and closed his eyes, hoping that the night would end quickly.

Ludwig awoke hours later, still holding tightly to the Illonian. His head throbbed and he felt a cold wind at his back. He made to move away from Feliciano, but the Illonian mumbled in his sleep and clutched Ludwig's coat.

His golden eyes fluttered open and as he slowly came to, his eyes widened in shock and he blushed a dark red, "Luddy?"

Ludwig blushed, too, from embarrassment and sat up, "Do you have any idea the trouble I went through to find you?" he muttered, "_I cannot believe you would carelessly run off like that!_" he shouted, returning to his native tongue.

"_I'm sorry_ …" Feliciano muttered, also in Gartyrarren, "_I closed my eyes for a moment because some snow got in my eyes, but I stumbled into a tree and slipped … I must have hit my head …_" he reached up to feel the back of his head where a large blood crusted spot was. Ludwig frowned, feeling a bit guilty for yelling.

He decided to change the subject, "_You speak Gartyrarren?_"

Feliciano seemed to brighten up, "_Of course! Roddy speaks it, so I picked a little bit up from him, but I made sure to learn it for …_" he trailed off, looking slightly saddened, "_And then of course when I go to visit my brother, the family he's living with speak it too! Ve … I need to know it!_"

Ludwig smiled, but something nagged him about what made Feliciano so sad. He shook his head and leaned back against the cave wall, "_That's good. Not many southerners know it because they consider our villages and lands to be barbaric for not electing kings or however that stuff is done._"

Feliciano nodded, pretending to know what Ludwig was talking about. He subconsciously curled up into the man's lap, seeking heat from the cold.

The blonde let his hand rest on Feliciano's head, "_So tell me more about this brother of yours._"

"Ve~?" liquid gold eyes lit up as he began telling long anecdotes about his older brother and how nice and sweet and caring he was and about how mean he could be and all the little stories he would tell his younger brother about their mother, that he barely remembered himself.

He spoke joyously until he fell asleep again sometime later. Ludwig smiled softly and let his own eyes slip closed.

When they awoke again later, the storm had completely stopped and the sun was high up in the sky. Ludwig frowned at the waste of time. He pulled his supplies back into the bag and led Feliciano back up the slope to their trail. In a matter of minutes he found the group, still in the cave waiting.

Elizaveta jumped up and took both men into her arms, "Oh thank god!" she cried, "I thought we lost both of you!"

Feliciano apologized for making her worry and even Roderich joined in the little love fest. Soon after, they began to work out a new plan.

"These storms seem to come whenever, without warning," Ludwig frowned, "We can't just hope we'll come across a cave whenever it suits us best, and it seems to be dangerous to travel at all in those storms." he looked up at Feliciano with slight guilt as Elizaveta re-wrapped the bandages around his head.

"Well, we can't just stay here, either." a man spoke up.

"Besides, we're low on food and we have too many sick to stay much longer."

Ludwig nodded, "I know." he sighed, "We need to send a message ahead. Maybe letting them know we're on our way. That way, if we don't show up soon, they will know we're at least out here. They may even send help our way."

He grabbed some parchment and a quill and wrote a small note:

_Whomever receives this,_

_ I've found a few Illonians wishing for sanctuary from naga. We are on our way, however a sudden ice storm has delayed us._

_ Ludwig._

He rolled it up tightly and tied it off, "Now we get it to the camp."

One man offered up his pet bird, which could easily be used to send messages, "Good." he muttered, sending it off.

"We should probably cover as much ground as possible before another storm hits." Ludwig sighed, making sure everyone was packed up.

* * *

_~Lady Pyrien_


	4. Chapter 4

_Guess what! Kismet :33_

* * *

**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Four: Reunion**

* * *

They received no messages back, though the bird did come back, but it didn't matter. A week had passed and they were finally on the edges of the Illonian refugee camp. Illonians were everywhere, enjoying life in the warming air of Sverran. They bartered with each other for goods and ate and danced. Feliciano smiled brightly.

He looked up at Ludwig and a blushed crept into his cheeks. Ever since that night in the small cave, he couldn't bring himself to think of anything but the Gartyrarren man. Ludwig had gone into a storm to save him! It also was confusing since he still loved Horoem … his hand flew to the cold metal chain and pendant beneath his shirt. It felt heavy on him.

Feliciano sighed. The group began splitting up, but Elizaveta and Roderich made plans to meet back up with Feliciano and Ludwig by the end of the day in the spot they were in.

Ludwig looked around and sighed, his stomach grumbling lightly, "Stay in this spot, right here. I'm going to go find us something to eat. Then we'll look around a bit, okay?"

Feliciano blushed again and nodded, "Anything or you, Luddy!" he saluted his friend and rolled back on his feet and sighed. It was rather boring just waiting for Ludwig to come back. He looked around and saw so many people it brought a smile to his face.

"Mama!" he heard a small voice beside him, then small hands gripped his pants. He looked down to see a small child, a little boy. The boy had auburn hair, a small curl jutting out to his left and bright hazel eyes.

"Mama!" the child shouted again, before adding something in a language he didn't understand. Feliciano looked around, maybe to find the boy's real mother, but everyone walked right passed him. He frowned.

"I'll take you to your mama, okay?" he picked up the toddler and smiled gently as the child laid his head down on Feli's shoulder. Feliciano noticed he child was wearing soft, expensive looking clothing and wore a small golden circlet around his forehead.

He smiled and looked around again. A loud piercing cry startled the Illonian as a large, beautiful bird landed in front of Feliciano on a rack holding clothing. Its black eyes narrowed and scrutinized Feliciano.

"Ariana!" the little boy called out happily, clapping his hand together.

The bird, Ariana, let out another cry and took to the air, lowly. Feliciano bit his lip, "Are you trying to lead me somewhere?"

She answered with a soft squawk and he smiled following her through the tents and other things.

Confusion only settled in when people bowed their heads to him and mumbled things about his majesty and all that, but he shrugged it off.

"Mama …" the little boy muttered again, adding more words in his other language.

Feliciano became confused, "I'm sorry. I'm not your mama …"

Ariana finally stopped at a large tent and she landed in front of it, slowly walking inside. Feliciano frowned, but walked inside as well, getting a good look at the brightly colored blankets that covered a bed and a small crib in front of that. A man sat at a desk like table in the back, mumbling over his work. He growled and tensed when Feliciano entered the room and he slammed his fist onto the table before standing up.

"Mama!" the little boy shouted.

The man turned and Feliciano found himself at a loss for words. The man had the same bright hazel eyes as the child, his hair a dark auburn, only covered slightly by a golden hat thing. A curl twisted from his right side and he stared in shock back.

"Feli?" he whispered.

Tears sprung up in Feliciano's eyes and he set the child down, "Lovi!" he wrapped his arms around his brother in a tight embrace. "I missed you!" he spoke in Illonian.

"Ve~! The pretty bird led me here when the little guy called me mama and grabbed my leg~!" he looked down at the small toddler, who looked really confused.

Lovino smiled and picked him up, letting the little arms lock around his neck, "His name is Tristán."

Feliciano tilted his head, "Ve … so … he's your baby?"

Lovino nodded and bounced Tristán, "Say hi to your uncle Feli …" the toddler buried his face and smiled shyly. Lovino laughed and motioned to the bed, "Sit. We need to talk."

The Illonian squeaked and jumped onto the bed, wondering what his brother wanted to talk about. "Ve~! So soft! You must be royalty here! Look! You're even wearing jewels and a pretty necklace~!" he laughed, feeling the soft blankets and sheets beneath him. He looked up at his older brother, whom was glaring, gripping the choker defensively.

"It's a wedding symbol in Sverran!" he growled.

Feliciano smiled brightly, "You're married?" he couldn't believe it! His brother was happy and married with children.

Lovino nodded, "How else would I have had children?"

Feliciano nodded, "That's right … I kind of hoped I'd be married before you, but I'm so happy for you brother … but … I thought you were up north … ve … big sister Elizaveta said you were …" he muttered sadly.

The older man froze, "I ran away. The very same day he took me. We stopped in Sverran and I took the first chance I could and ran."

Feliciano felt both sadness and anger building up, "You didn't write me!"

Lovino looked slightly guilty and looked down at Tristán, "I couldn't. At first I thought I was going to die, but then I was saved. The bastard who saved me made me his personal servant and by the time he was able to send a message out to you, Illonia had been overrun … I thought you were dead …"

Feliciano smiled, "Almost was! But Luddy saved me and then he saved the whole village! He led us up around a semi safe path and we managed to find our way here~! When we're done here, me and Luddy and maybe Ellie and Roddy are going to the capital to meet with Luddy's brother and Roddy wants to meet with the king and queen. You know your little hat reminds me of a princess crown from those fairy tale books Ellie used to read us! Remember?"

Lovino blinked and laughed, "You're going to meet with the king and queen, huh?" Feliciano nodded happily.

Feliciano nodded and began speaking about his journey and how he'd been saved and when he and Ludwig shared the cave during the ice storm.

The Illonian man was startled out of his storm when another man came bursting into the tent. His face was streaked with tears and he looked down at the young boy playing in Lovino's lap with the golden thing.

Lovino shot the man a glare, "This is that bastard I told you about. The one who made me his personal servant."

Feliciano looked up and met shocked green eyes, "Ve~! You saved my brother?"

The man looked at Lovino and then back to Feliciano before looking at Lovino, "This is your brother? You found him?" Lovino smiled lightly and nodded. The man smiled brightly, setting the little girl that was in his arms down on the bed and, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Feliciano. Lovi had told me so much about you~!"

Lovino hit him in the shoulder, which caused the older man to wince and whine, "Lovi~! What was that for?"

Feliciano laughed lightly, looking at his brother blush and turn away, but he was overcome with shock when the man leaned forward and pressed his lips to his brother's in a soft, passionate kiss. The young man's face lit up bright red and he turned away, occupying himself with a stuffed toy on the ground.

"Bastard! You lost Tristán!" Feliciano turned back to his brother and the man.

"I'm sorry, Lovi! I set him down to shift Romana better, but when I turned to grab him, he was gone. I searched everywhere … but couldn't find him …"

Feliciano was slightly confused and looked at Lovino, "Ve … Lovi … who is this man … you said he was the one who saved you but …" his face felt warm.

The man turned his bright emerald eyes to Feliciano and smiled, "I'm his husband~!"

Feliciano ve'd and jumped up happily to meet his new brother-in-law properly, "So nice to meet you, big brother … uh …"

"Antonio, but you can call me Toni~"

"Big brother Tonio~!"

Tristán began to fuss and Lovino jumped up to take the twins to a spot where he could feed them. He grabbed a fork and began feeding them.

"Ve~! Lovi is such a good mama!" Feliciano smiled, slightly jealous of his brother. Lovino looked so happy with the children in front of him. A pang went through Feliciano's heart as he thought about having a family with a loved one. Ludwig didn't seem to like kids and Horoem was still nowhere to be found.

Lovino blushed and glared and Feliciano, "Shut up." he growled, putting more of the food into their mouths.

Antonio plopped down next to Feliciano and smiled, "But, Lovi, you really are too cute sitting there with the babies~! So cute!"

The older brother glared, picked up the twins and placed them in their bed before turning his dark glare on Feliciano and Antonio.

"Ve~! Don't hurt me!" he shouted in fear of what his brother was going to do to him, but rather than getting hit or bitten, he felt Lovino tackle him to the bed and hold onto his tightly. He felt a wave of love and longing for his brother and held him back.

He heard an aw from his new big brother but an ouch soon followed. Feliciano smiled, burying his face into Lovino's neck.

"Lovi … I have to get going now …" he frowned, remembering that Ludwig had gone to get them something to eat and that everyone was probably worried about him.

"No …" Lovino glared, "Stay here tonight … I missed you …"

The younger brother smiled and nodded, "Okay!" he would just have to make it up to the others tomorrow. That night, he was happy to fall asleep in his brother's arms again.

He was awoken with a jolt the next morning with Lovino screaming about a snake, but when he jumped up, and began crying, Lovino told him there was no snake.

Instead of heading back to find Ludwig, like he thought, he ended up staying with Lovino some more while Lovino went to work. Their first stop was actually breakfast. Feliciano smiled softly, popping some fruit into his mouth. He looked up to see the red and yellow and orange bird resting on Lovino's shoulder.

"What is that?" he asked, studying her.

Lovino looked at her, "A phoenix. I named her Ariana. Antonio got her for me for my … seventeenth … birthday, I think …" he shrugged and smiled softly.

"Ve~! A phoenix! So pretty!" Feliciano smiled, reaching out to touch her. He'd never seen a real phoenix before!

"I wouldn't if I were you. She's very territorial. Just … go slowly … I'm surprised she allowed anyone to pick up Tristán that wasn't me." Feliciano nodded and went slower and Ariana watched him closely, but let him touch the feathers softly, "Ve~!" that was so exciting!

His heart twisted again when Lovino sighed grumpily and scooted his plate away from the little girl at the table. She frowned and began whining before Lovino set a separate plate of fruit for them. Feliciano smiled lightly at his niece and nephew, "They're so adorable~!" he cooed.

Lovino nodded, "Yup and they're all mine," he smiled tickling Tristán, causing the little boy to laugh and squirm. He smiled and rubbed his head lightly, "I love them so much … thank you …" he blushed lightly.

Feliciano tilted his head in confusion, "For what?"

"For dropping the necklace that day. If you hadn't done that, none of this would have happened."

Feliciano was still confused, but shrugged it off, "I didn't do anything …"

After breakfast was finished, Lovino got to do his duties, as he called them. Feliciano looked at the little girl he'd yet to hold or get to know, "Lovi! Can I hold her, please?"

Lovino glared and clutched the twins tightly.

"Please?" the younger brother let his lips quiver.

"Fine." he made a move to let Romano go to Feliciano. She went with no problem and Lovino nodded, "But if you drop her, I'll kick your ass!"

Feliciano nodded nervously, and held her tightly as they continued walking. He stood back as he brother stopped at a group of arguing men and women. It was the same thing. Lovino would stop a group from fighting and go on to the next one.

"Ve~ it's weird …"

"What's weird, dumb-dumb?" Lovino snapped, having to stop what he was talking about with the men.

Feliciano shrugged, "That you're the one doing all this. Ve … isn't that a royal's job? And some of these people call you majesty … why?"

Lovino stared at him. "A-are you really that stupid?"

Feliciano pouted, "What? I'm not stupid!" he crossed his arms as best he could with Romano in his arms. She squealed in discomfort.

"Is this your brother, your majesty?" one of the men asked.

Lovino nodded, "Yeah. Feliciano, why would someone call another 'your majesty'?"

Feliciano thought for a second, "Because they are a king or a queen or a prince or a princess?"

Lovino nodded, "Yes. That's right, now why would they call _me _'your majesty'?"

He thought for a second before a huge grin spread across his face, "Because you're a king or a queen or a prince or a princess!"

"That's right, Feli."

Feliciano tilted his head, "Wait … you're …" that couldn't be. He thought, confused.

"Queen. Of Sverran. Antonio, my husband, is the king." he explained, quickly, turning back to the men and telling them exactly where the stuff they were fighting over was going, "The extra blankets over here. They have more children and elderly, however, they have more need for the coats. Hunting men, right?" they nodded, "They'll need the lighter easier to move clothing to gather food anyways."

They nodded and divided up the stuff per Lovino's instruction.

"You're a queen~?" Feliciano smiled and jumped, "I've never met a queen or a king before! Does that mean these two are royalty, too?" he looked at the twins.

Lovino nodded, "Yeah, Tristán will take the throne when Antonio passes it to him."

"That's so cool! Does that make me a prince, too?" Feliciano asked, excitedly. It would have been so cool if he could be a prince, too.

Lovino raised his brow and shrugged, "I don't know that you'd be a prince, but you'd definitely be important to me and through me, Antonio. Maybe he'd give you a title like lord or something. I don't really know how that works."

Feliciano laughed lightly and nodded. But his mind became preoccupied with another thought, "Luddy is a knight. People call him lord or sir all the time. It's really amazing!"

"Who the hell is 'Luddy' and why does that name make me want to punch the person?"

Feliciano tilted his head, "Oh! Ludwig is the knight who saved us! I was almost tricked into becoming dinner when he showed up and killed the naga. Of course, when a dragon attacked he fought it, too and decided that it was too dangerous around~! He led us all to safety! He's supposed to be meeting his brother here! I told you that earlier, remember? Anyways, he's my new best friend! I told you about him last night!"

"Oh, right … His brother?" Lovino frowned.

"Yeah~! Gilbert Beilschmidt!"

Lovino cringed, "This Ludwig person is _his _brother? I hate him already. Stupid potato bastards!"

"Ve~! You know Gilbert?"

"Unfortunately, the jerk came around a month or so ago and pestered me and Antonio. Won't leave us alone for a few fucking minutes to save his life. Those two and King Francis of Fayldyr were best friends a really long time ago." Lovino sighed, sitting down for a bit of lunch, "I can't stand them where two of them are together … but Francis is coming to visit and it's going to only worsen."

"Ve~?"

Lovino fed a bite off of his plate to Tristán, "Did you know that bastard we met a long time ago, Francis, was a prince? That's the guy coming to visit."

Feliciano's eyes widened with joy. Of course he remembered Big brother Francis! "Big brother Francis? Ve~! I haven't seen him since I was a little kid!"

"He's just a perverted bastard." Lovino shrugged giving Romana a bite as well, not really eating any himself. He kissed her head and smiled.

After the twins were well fed, he and Feliciano carried them back to the tent to put the sleepy twins down for a nap. They slept almost the second their little heads laid down. Feliciano smiled down at his niece and nephew.

"They are so cute! You're so lucky, Lovi~!" he spoke with the twinge of jealousy. He probably would give anything to have one of his own.

"So whatever happened with your Horoem or whatever his name was?" at this, Feliciano froze. Pain welled up in his chest, "I don't really know …" he heard his voice cracking, "He never came back …" he ghosted his fingers over the spot he knew the necklace rested, "I keep waiting … but he never comes … not that he'll find me now that I was forced to leave home … ve …"

Lovino sighed and began awkwardly comforting his little brother. Feliciano smiled, but still felt the dull ache in his chest. He'd been trying so hard not to think about his brother's happiness versus his lack thereof. On top of not knowing where Horoem was, he was now confused because of Ludwig as well.

* * *

_~Lady Pyrien_


	5. Chapter 5

_kjfaergaoieg Just gonna keep updating when I remember ahaha X'D lo siento my lovlies...so I've discovered PruIta and I'm in love with it :'33 why does it now have more love? _

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**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Five: Camp Life**

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Feliciano sighed, his mind still caught on the subject of his mixed feelings. Maybe his brother could help, "Ve … I like Luddy … like … really like him …"

His older brother looked at his with a disgusted face, "Why? What about your fiancée?"

Feliciano smiled guiltily, "I know … I'm so confused … I love Horoem … but … it's been over ten years … Big sister Elizaveta said he might be coming back for me … and I hate to say this … but I'm not so sure. I miss him … ve … I want to be with him. He was my first love and I thought maybe he was my only love … but Luddy is here now … and I really like him. He's strong and brave and handsome and …" he just sighed. He hated this feeling and he couldn't tell if it was because he was grateful to Ludwig for saving his life or if he was really developing feelings for the blond Gartyrarren.

Lovino wrapped his arms around Feliciano and the Illonian burst into tears, "I don't know what to do! I love them both, but Ludwig doesn't like me and Horoem won't come back!" he continued letting everything off his chest until he finally felt the reaches of sleepiness pulling at him.

He gave in and fell into a deep, almost relieved, nap. Feliciano was awoken a little bit later by his brother-in-law.

Feliciano groaned in his sleepy state and looked up at Antonio, "Can you help Ariana babysit? Lovino seems to be shirking his paperwork and I'm going to have to help him, but the babies need someone to watch them. Who's better than their uncle they should be getting to know?"

Happiness sparked through Feliciano. He would finally get more time with his niece and nephew! "Okay~!"

Antonio picked up the twins and placed them in Feliciano's arms, "Thank you! Now, Ariana knows what's best, so just follow her and don't let them out of your sight or get hurt. Lovino will probably come find you when he's done."

The Vargas man nodded and lifted the babies up, "Oh, they're heavy together~! Ve~! I'll see you later then, big brother Tonio?"

Antonio nodded, "Oh and don't spoil their dinner by letting them eat anything more than those cookies. Lovino might get upset."

Feliciano smiled, leaving the tent with the babies. They silently ate the cookies Antonio must have given them and he looked around, wondering where to go first. He spent the next ten minutes looking at pretty jewelry that a woman was selling to help keep her family fed.

He laughed lightly as Romana pulled off her circlet and tried to give it to the woman. She smiled kindly, taking it and placing it back on the princess's head, "Why thank you, your majesty~" Romana shrugged and slapped her brother's hand away from her circlet.

"No, Tissy!" she yelped.

Tristán began crying and Feliciano bounced the twins lightly, trying to calm him down, "Oh … please stop crying! Lovi will be so mad if I broke you!" he bounced the child some more until he calmed down and he smiled in relief.

He turned to walk away, but came face to face with Ludwig, "Feliciano … here I am looking all over for you and you're playing with some stranger's kids?" he sighed, looking around, "We'd better find their mother and give them back." he reached out to take Tristán from Feliciano, but Feliciano pulled them out of reach.

"Don't touch them, Luddy …"

"Feliciano, seriously, these aren't your children and their mother is probably worried sick!" he grabbed Tristán's arm and Feliciano yelped as a loud cry shot out through the air and Ariana began attacking Ludwig.

The Illonian's heart began racing, not knowing what to do. He couldn't put the babies down, else his brother get really mad if they happened to wander off, but he couldn't just let Ludwig get eaten by the phoenix.

He chose the obvious to protect the twins from the gathering crowd and clutched them tightly. Ariana's screeches were scaring them and they began crying.

A loud whistled pierced the air and everyone went silent as Ariana flew off to the side. Feliciano knew it was his brother. He turned to apologize, but Lovino stormed up to Ludwig and slammed his fist into his face, "How _dare _you touch my children!" he yelled.

Ludwig stared in disbelief at the two men before him. Feliciano looked apologetically at the one who'd hit him and handed him the children. They were almost identical!

"I told you not to touch them, Luddy …"

"What the …?" he couldn't believe how much they looked alike. No wonder the kids thought he was their father. He shook his head lightly, clearing such insane thoughts away. The real father turned away and hushed the babies.

"Ludwig! We heard the commotion! Are you okay?" he heard Elizaveta's voice as she ran up with Roderich.

Ludwig nodded, dusting himself off and gripping his chin, "Yeah … I'm okay. I finally found Feliciano and he was playing with two strange children … He said something about not touching them, but I wondered who they belonged to since they weren't his and maybe I'd help find their real mother. I should have listened. That damn phoenix started attacking me and their father hit me so hard I was seeing double."

Ludwig looked up at the father of the children as another man ran up. He had tan skin and emerald eyes, "What's going on here, sweetheart?" the man wrapped his arms around his family. Ludwig frowned lightly and looked to Feliciano. He was severely disappointed in the young man for causing worry to the family.

The two spoke for a moment and the taller, tan man looked up with a dark intent in his eyes. Ludwig didn't look at Feliciano as he made sure Ludwig's chin was okay. The man frowned lightly and rubbed the shorter man's shoulder.

"I'm terribly sorry about that … um …" Ludwig's attention snapped to Roderich, whom took a step forward. The Gartyrarren looked back to the man.

"Antonio … King Antonio Fernandez Carriedo of Sverran." he said a tad bit bitterly, "And it seems you upset my husband?" Ludwig didn't know whether to feel scared or angry. He'd unintentionally upset the royal family of Sverran because of Feliciano. He wanted to scold Feliciano, but the Illonian wouldn't look at him.

"Your majesty, Ludwig meant no disrespect, especially to the royal family so gracious enough to host refugees from Illonia. It's just we found Feliciano holding children that didn't belong to him and we only wanted to find their family." Roderich tried to explain.

King Antonio glared hard at Roderich, but frowned apologetically to his supposed husband. Feliciano winced when Elizaveta gave him a disapproving look.

"Feliciano is family." the king spun his husband around and Ludwig looked confused at the queen of Sverran. His hazel eyes widened before he turned and kicked the king's leg. King Antonio hissed in pain.

"Lovino?" Elizaveta whispered. Ludwig looked at her as tears filled her eyes. His gaze looked to Roderich, who was just shocked. So that was the brother who went missing in Sverran?

Feliciano took off after his brother and the king glared, "I assume you know my queen?"

Elizaveta let her tears fall and she looked at the king, "Is that really Lovino? I thought he was dead!"

The king's gaze hardened lightly, "He almost was … luckily, he fell into water and was saved by a passing mermaid. I found him afterward and took him in. He's been my queen for several years now and quite happy. I thank you for bringing us Feliciano. We've been searching for him for quite some time." he turned and was about to storm off, after the two brothers.

"Wait!" Elizaveta called out desperately, "Please … please let me see him … talk to him …" Ludwig bit his lip, sinking back a bit to stand next to Roderich. He feared what would happen to him if he were to upset the king who housed him and his brother, wherever he was.

The king shrugged, "If he'll allow it. He's a tad touchy about the subject of his being sold off." King Antonio muttered bitterly, glaring lightly, "While I thank you for allowing the chance for me to meet the love of my life, I do hate you for separating him from his brother. He's been miserable about that."

Elizaveta nodded, "I'll be back, Roderich, Ludwig." she quickly followed after him.

"Now what?" Ludwig asked Roderich. The man shrugged, "I don't know. She divorced me because of Lovino. She said I'd become heartless and cruel … I was being realistic. All we can do is wait for them to come back. Feliciano might not come back at all … now that he has his family back."

Ludwig didn't know why, but those words struck a chord with him. Feliciano might not come back? He sighed. He didn't understand, but when he was with Feliciano, it felt as though a part of him had returned. He then knew things he'd never known before, like the lullaby his mother sang to him when he was younger, the smell of her perfume. He remembered Roderich and growing up with him for a little bit and the young man who'd lived with his family for a while. Most importantly, when he was with the Illonian, he remembered his Ita better, her laugh, the way she could take a stick and create gorgeous drawings in the sand by their hiding spot.

He felt more like a human being when Feliciano was around … so maybe … that was why he didn't want to part with his friend … his only friend.

Ludwig groaned, "I'm going to get something to drink." Roderich nodded as Ludwig made his way to the tent he'd found with food and drink and bought a beer. It was like piss compared to the stuff brewed up north, but he drank it anyway.

His mind focused on the thought of losing his best friend and he sighed. He downed the rest of his beer and pushed the cup away to let his head rest on his hand. The scratched in his face and arms stung, but not nearly as much as the thought of losing Feliciano.

"Ve~! Luddy!" he felt arms slip around his neck, "Ellie said you were looking for me?"

The Gartyrarren nodded, "Uh … I guess so …" his face lit up lightly. The two sat in silence for a moment before Feliciano began babbling about his brother.

"He's the queen of Sverran! Can you believe it? Ve~ he said he was going to give me a title! Isn't that amazing? I feel so special being related to royalty!" he laughed lightly.

Ludwig smiled for Feliciano, "So, are you going to live in the palace with your brother?" just asking the question had he man on pins and needles. His heart began to race.

"Ve? Well … maybe~ I'd like to return to Illonia if it ever gets better. There's someone waiting for me." he spoke softly, kind of sadly.

"Who?" he was almost afraid to ask.

Feliciano's face lit up with joy and pain, "My fiancé."

The blonde man held back his frown, "Fiancée?"

"Yup~ I have to go back now that I know where my brother is~" Feliciano laughed happily. Ludwig nodded and ordered another beer. The knight sighed, wondering why it upset him so much. He had his own love to find back in Illonia as well.

Feliciano spent the rest of the day showing Ludwig around the camps where his brother had supposedly taken him.

"Oh my~" Ludwig turned to see a blond man sitting at a table. The man was staring Feliciano over in his drunken haze, "Why if it isn't the little queen~" the man was sitting next to the king, Antonio, who squinted, also drunk.

"That's … that's not Lovi … Feli!" the man laughed.

Feliciano smiled and ran over to sit down, "Big brother Francis! Big brother Tonio!" Ludwig sighed, having no choice but to sit down as well.

"Sorry … 'bout earlier!" the king Antonio slurred lightly, "Lovi … Lovi doesn' like anyone touching the twins, 'cept family."

"Tell me about it!" Francis laughed, "That husband of yours is too uptight~ unlike his cute little brother~" Francis leaned over to hug Feliciano, "You've grown so much since the last time I saw you~! You were such a tiny little thing!"

"Yo! West, about time you made it this way!" Ludwig turned to see his brother walking up holding a pitcher and a bottle of wine. He sat down and handed the wine to Francis and poured the pitcher into a cup for himself, "Here have a drink! I didn't know you were here."

"Ve?"

Ludwig rolled his eyes, "I could say the same. I thought you had gone to the capital." he sipped the pisswater.

Gilbert laughed, "I was, but the man I came to see was in hiding here." he wrapped his arm over Antonio's shoulder. The king laughed lightly, "It's been too long since we were all together!" he laughed back.

The younger knight frowned, only now noticing the two were slightly familiar.

_"I want to go too, brother!" Ludwig shouted._

_ Gilbert, much younger, turned back, "No, now go home. I'm not even your real brother!" he ran off with the two young boys, one brunette, the other blond. The five year old frowned, muttering about it being the worst vacation ever._

"Yo … west … you there? You zoned out … get another memory?"

Francis grinned, "Now I remember him! He was that little one that always followed you around!"

"Oh yeah!" Antonio laughed, "He had almost managed to follow us to the hide out once!"

Ludwig gave Gilbert a look, but said nothing as Antonio went off on some anecdote about going there in the recent years and fighting a dragon and what not. Ludwig didn't pay much attention. He was lost in the memory he'd gotten back. They'd only spent a little time in Sverran that time, long enough for Ludwig to resent his brother and for said brother to make two lifetime friends.

"I almost died, but my sweet little Lovi saved me~! Oh man … that week was crazy …" Antonio chuckled, darkly. Ludwig saw it was obvious that Antonio didn't think that day was as funny as he let on, but the blond man said nothing.

Feliciano yawned and leaned against Ludwig, "Go to bed." Ludwig groaned, pushing against him, "Elizaveta is in the northern camp …"

The Illonian shook his head and curled up against Ludwig, dozing off slightly. Gilbert looked over, "Woo~!" he cheered, getting Antonio and Francis to join in, "I'll give you my tent so you can get cozy~!"

Ludwig felt a vein popping as he shoved the sleepy Illonian from his shoulder again, "Shut up, East." he sighed, embarrassed.

The king of Sverran and the king of Fayldyr, as Ludwig learned shortly after their talking picked back up, went off. Francis had to be off the next morning, back to his kingdom and Antonio was already knowing he was going to get his ass chewed out for leaving for so long on such a hard day for his husband.

Feliciano had his head on the table, sleeping while Ludwig was being bombarded with questions from his older brother.

"So, did you find her?" Gilbert asked, sipping the wannabe beer. His red eyes glinted mischievously in the dim lighting of the torches put up at night.

"Does it look like I found her?" Ludwig growled, annoyed, "I found the village, saved this thing from being dinner, was invited into his home because I saved him, only to find out she doesn't live in the village and if she did she's dead. I offered to help the village and came here …" he sipped the foul liquid and shuddered as the unnatural flavors burned down his throat.

Gilbert sighed, "West … I knew it was a long shot in the first place, but … your fiancée is out there. I know it. But maybe you should ask yourself if this is what you want. I mean … not everyone has to settle down and besides," he patted his littler brother's shoulder, "We're knights, we don't get romantic until we're ready to give up a life of adventure. It's hard to raise a family and love a spouse while fighting dragons for a kingdom and hooking up with sexy fairies and mermaids, am I right?"

Ludwig rolled his eyes, "It's not about the wife or about settling down …" he pulled the pendant from his shirt, "this is about finding the other half of my key … my world seemed to revolve around that girl … and now my memories are buried away with no hope of getting out unless I find her … memories of mother … of father … of my past … she holds the key and I won't rest until she's in my arms …"

Feliciano grumbled something about pasta in his sleep and shifted a bit to locate a source of heat and curled up in Ludwig's lap. The Gartyrarren sighed and draped an arm over him while tucking away his pendant with the other hand.

Gilbert looked at his brother, then to the coppery haired Illonian and smiled.

"I'm going to get him to bed. The king of Sverran seems to be leaving in a week and Feliciano and I are going with him."

"As am I, West. I still need a damn job and I'm sure Toni will give me one. The bitch owes me big time for stalling him on something important a while back. Anyways, see you tomorrow, West."

Ludwig nodded and slung Feliciano over his shoulder, dragging him back to his tent. He slipping inside and placed Feliciano onto an extra cot. The Gartyrarren took off the Illonian's boots and sighed, taking off his own as well as his jacket.

Sleep refused to come to Ludwig, at least, not for a while. He laid awake several hours just imagining what life would have been like had he not forgotten.

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_~Lady Pyrien_


	6. Chapter 6

_mmmmmmmmm Another chapter~~ If I haven't replied to your review, I'm so sorry... Yahoo flipped it's shit and I can't figure anything out right now... I'm lucky if I haven't deleted my reviews ..._

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**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Six: Gave Her Heart Away**

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_Ludwig looked up and saw her there. Her short copper hair glistened in the sunlight, her melodic, childish voice echoed hauntingly. She turned her eyes to Ludwig and smiled, clutching her white dress up as she waded through the water._

_ "Horoem~!" she called out lovingly. She was different … older … as she would look if she were his age now._

_ She stepped from the water and slowly made her way up to him, "Horoem~" her voice began changing._

_ "Ludwig~" she muttered. A blush spread across his cheeks and he licked his lips, reaching out to grab her now extended hand. She looked strangely familiar … kind of like-_

_ "Ludwig!"_

His eyes shot open and he sat up quickly, slamming his face into Feliciano's. The Illonian stumbled back, tripping over his boots and landing on his butt on the ground, "Ow!" Feliciano groaned, continuing to lie on the ground pathetically.

Ludwig shook his head and looked up, "What do you want, Feliciano?" he groaned, himself, shaking the dream from his head. It was honestly the first dream he'd had in a while that wasn't a memory.

After helping his mess of a friend up, he got dressed and headed out, with Feliciano in tow, to find his brother. He found Gilbert sitting in the food tent with the king Antonio and, Ludwig frowned, his queen, Feliciano's brother.

"Ve~! Lovi!" Feliciano ran to hug his brother as well as the two children sitting beside him. Ludwig carefully seated himself beside his older brother, but was well aware of the dark, anger filled glare he was receiving from the queen.

He cleared his throat lightly and grabbed some food for himself and began eating. Antonio and Gilbert talked about the job opportunity for him and Ludwig.

"Oh fu-" the queen glared, "I don't even think so! This bas-jerk tried to hurt my kids!"

Ludwig glared, feeling a headache coming on, "I was worried that Feliciano had picked up some stranger's children. I meant no harm to them or you."

"So you admit you thought my brother was trying to kidnap someone's kids! Is that anyways for a friend to think about another?" he spat back.

"No. that's not what I was saying. What would you think if you saw your brother, who you know does not have children, standing in the middle of a crowded area holding children?"

Lovino glared, "I'd think he was babysitting my twins."

Ludwig glared, "I didn't know you were here. I was informed you were dead."

The queen glared harder than before, "We'll get this straight right here, right now, potato bas-" he covered his children's ears, "Potato bastard, I hate you, I loathe you, I would love to see you hanging by your 'perfectly styled' head from my bedroom window. Watch your fucking step. He can have a job, but only because I want my brother at home with me." he let go of the kid's ears and picked them up, storming away.

The Gartyrarren knight was slightly confused, but expected no less from the man he'd accidentally insulted. Plus, according to Feliciano, Lovino was mostly all bark and little bite. He rubbed his bruised jaw, knowing his bite could be harsh.

"Well, well …" Ludwig looked up to see Elizaveta and Roderich walking up. Elizaveta's eyes were trained passed Ludwig at his silver haired brother, who'd yet to look up. The woman grabbed a frying pan from a random table and walked up, "If it isn't you!"

Gilbert looked up and spit out his beer all over Antonio and Ludwig. Then the man began laughing harder than Ludwig had ever seen him laugh before, "Oh this is rich! You're actually wearing dresses now?"

Elizaveta growled, but had a dark grin on her face, "Yes … I am."

"You don't remember," Gilbert turned to Ludwig, "But she used to live with us up north. She also thought she was a boy and that your pe-"

She hit him with the pan, "Shut up!"

"Ve~! Wait! That means you were telling me your story?" Feliciano tilted his head, only adding to the confusion, "At bed time … the girl who thought she was a boy?"

The woman blushed, "Of course, Feli~!" she set the pan down, ignoring Gilbert's cries of pain.

Ludwig shook his head and ignored everyone, even as his brother noticed Roderich and began teasing him about things from their past.

The next few days passed too quickly it seemed. Lovino avoided Ludwig and Roderich at all costs. He didn't mind, though, he'd rather avoid angering the Sverran queen anyway.

Two carriages had been set up for their trip to the castle and he stood beside one, waiting for Elizaveta, Roderich and Gilbert to stop arguing and climb into one. He looked up and saw Feliciano talking with his brother, who looked rather upset and angry. He turned away and climbed into his own carriage. Feliciano came bounding over and wrapped his arms around Ludwig tightly, "Ve~ I'm riding with you, Luddy!"

As the day dragged on, Ludwig quickly grew tired of the fighting, arguing and what not and tried to sleep, but Feliciano beat him to it and fell asleep on his shoulder, only adding to his embarrassment when Gilbert began teasing him and Elizaveta joined in, blood trickling from her nose. He began wondering if something was severely wrong with her.

Night fell and Ludwig found they pulled to a stop in front of an inn. A frown marred his face, "Feliciano, go see why we've stopped …"

The young man woke up and nodded, climbing out, only to come back a few minutes later, "Lovi said that you're either blind or stupid … we're staying at the inn and that he's paying for three rooms."

Ludwig rolled his eyes and climbed out. Feliciano grabbed his arm, "I want to spend the night in Luddy's room~!"

Elizaveta giggled, "Then I guess, that leaves Gil, Roddy and I in the third room~"

"Oh hell no, princ-" the woman let her fist fall, hitting Gilbert where it counted. The man doubled over in pain, "Evil bitch!" he growled as Antonio handed them the two other keys to their rooms.

Ludwig and Feliciano went into the room they would be sharing and looked around. Feliciano made a happy squealing noise and leaped onto the bed, "It's been so long since I've been on a real bed!" he laughed lightly, kicking off his boots and curling up.

The Gartyrarren nodded, sitting beside him on the bed. He kicked of his boots. After a moment, he sighed and went to wash up his face in the large bowl on the dresser. He rubbed his face and let his hair fall down in his face. Ludwig crossed the room and lied down to sleep.

"Ve … Luddy …" Feliciano rolled over to face Ludwig. The man stared back, slightly surprised that his friend hadn't fallen asleep yet.

"Yes, Feliciano?"

A blush crept into the younger man's face and he averted his gaze, "If you promised yourself to someone … but that someone never came back to you … w-would it still be wrong to fall in love with another person?"

Ludwig was caught off guard, unable to truly answer the question, "Well … a promise is a very important thing, but … I've never … I don't … I haven't felt love for a very long time, Feliciano … I can't tell you what I would feel in your position, but I can say that you should honor your promise."

"Oh …" he looked dejected, "I see … thank you, Luddy." Feliciano rolled back over to sleep.

The older man just sighed and fell asleep as well, still confused by the question.

Morning came and the two ate a quick meal, Feliciano's question seemingly forgotten completely by the Vargas. He happily hopped into the carriage and began talking about the pasta filled dream he had and the first thing he was going to do upon reaching his brother's home was to eat a huge bowl of it. Ludwig remembered a part of his dreams where he promised himself to eat some for Ita.

A few hours passed and the carriages stopped again for a small break. The blonde man climbed out, thankful for the calming peace that now surrounded him. He didn't care for Lovino, but he spotted the man standing by the side of the road pointing out the land to his son.

He turned around and let out a soft sigh. Feliciano was standing beside a semi-steep hill, looking down, "Ve~"

"Get away from there. I'm not going to risk you falling down like you did on the mountain …"

Feliciano laughed and stepped away from the edge, yet it wasn't enough of a boundary to keep the Illonian from falling. He slipped and began stumbling backwards. Ludwig rushed forward to catch him, but ended up slipping as well. His first instinct was to wrap his arms tightly around Feliciano and keep him from getting severely injured.

His back hit the ground hard and he gripped Feliciano's head, holding him away from the ground as they rolled. Finally the two came to a stop and Ludwig groaned, letting go on the man lying on top of him. He just knew his arms and back were covered in scratches and cuts and bruises.

Feliciano made a move to sit up but yelped when he was caught on something.

Ludwig sat up as well and looked down to see Feliciano looking at his pendant, which what Feliciano was caught on. However, the Illonian was teeming with emotions. Ludwig looked down at the pendant. Both of them were wearing identical iron crosses.

Anger bubbled up in Ludwig as he reached up to untangle them, "Who the hell gave you that?" he growled.

The Illonian looked up at him in surprise, "What … I mean … it was my fiancé … my true love … it's a symbol of engagement … I wa-"

Ludwig shoved Feliciano back, getting angrier with each word, the pendant around Feliciano's neck snapped, letting the iron cross hit the ground with the broken cord lying limply around it. He couldn't believe what he'd just seen and heard.

'So she was real … but …' he looked back at Feliciano, who picked up his cross, looking devastated, 'she gave her heart to another …' he climbed into his carriage and slammed the door behind him. His fingers brushed over the cross beneath his shirt and he closed his eyes, reaching into his shirt, pulling it out and stuffing it into his pocket instead. He felt bare without it around his neck, naked, but Ludwig still couldn't believe his young love had given her heart away. He couldn't believe she would give another his gift to her, his token of love and devotion.

"Yo West~!" Gilbert climbed in the carriage, laughing brightly, Elizaveta behind him.

"Remember, asshole, not a damn word to either of them!" she warned, sitting down.

Gilbert held up his hands, "My lips are sealed~!"

The younger Beilschmidt was not in the mood and closed his eyes to sleep.

"Where's our cutie at?" Gilbert asked as the carriage began moving.

"He wanted to ride with his brother." Roderich stated, looking out the window, "Poor thing looked quite distraught about something."

Ludwig growled to himself, slipping into a fitful sleep.

Feliciano sat across from his brother, holding his niece. She played with his broken trinket while he held back his tears. Ludwig … was his Horoem … He had come back to him after all!

However … things couldn't be happy, could they? Ludwig seemed to hate him now. What had he done wrong? He didn't understand why Ludwig would break their … he blushed dark red … engagement off like that. It had made things so much easier for Feliciano when he realized they were the same person.

Why hadn't he seen it earlier? Blonde hair, blue eyes, hazy past, a knight … in search of his intended … he bit his lip hard, to keep from crying. Lovino, Antonio and Tristán were all asleep, leaving Feliciano alone with his thoughts and a very much awake Romana. She waved the cross around and finally dropped it in the seat beside them before turning to the source of the water on her neck. Her green eyes met gold ones, blurred with tears. The little girl frowned, only having known her uncle for a short period of time, but she knew he only cried once before. Usually he always smiled. She rested her hand on his cheek, wondering what was wrong.

Feliciano smiled and pressed a kiss to his niece's forehead and smiled down at her, but he couldn't hold it back anymore and began sobbing. She frowned, feeling her own sympathy pouring out. She began crying as well, but Feliciano hushed her before his brother woke up and killed him for upsetting his daughter.

The two finally were able to doze off. When he awoke sometime later, they had arrived at the castle.

A whole bunch of commotion went on outside the carriage on the steps as two strange women hugged all over Lovino, speaking to him in their Sverran tongue until the older woman greeted Feliciano as Lovino's mama. He smiled and just nodded calmly. He really wanted to just go to bed and try to forget the ten years of longing for his lost love and the new disappointment that had settled in where hope used to be.

Lovino dragged him down the halls to a great big bed room. It was gorgeous and had a large painted portrait of Lovino, Antonio and the twins when they were much younger hanging above the bed.

He'd liked all the other art he'd seen so far and that was no exception. The woman, Tessa, as he'd learned, finished helping Lovino with the bath before she left. Feliciano stood awkwardly as his brother stripped down the babies and placed them in the water.

"Feli, this bath is for you, too. Go ahead and jump in." Lovino muttered, joining the twins.

The younger brother nodded, "Oh … okay …" he was still quite unsure about getting in the water, but he slipped into it anyway and looked up at his brother. His body was thin and surprisingly enough slightly muscled. Feliciano wondered if that was the problem … was he not thin enough for Ludwig? Maybe it was the fact that he was nothing special … that he couldn't be strong like Ludwig …

"The water feels so nice~ who was that other girl from earlier? The one who spoke in that strange Sverran language?" he whispered, wanting to change the subject in his mind.

The queen looked up, "Oh! Femke. My surrogate sister here. We were best friends when we were younger, but Tessa adopted me as her own. She doesn't speak Illonian, so for the first year or two we didn't understand a thing the other said. Oh, and you should probably know that Savino, the male servant, is our half-brother."

Feliciano looked at him a bit shocked. They had a brother? "A brother huh? Ve~! That's amazing~!" his smile faded, "It's been so long since I've been in a nice hot bath~!"

Lovino laughed, "My whole life seemed to revolve around these stupid things. When I started working here, it was as Antonio's personal servant, mostly folding his clothes and running his bath kind of stuff." he grinned, "Our first kiss was at the bath …" he blushed lightly.

Feliciano smiled warmly, but he could only feel numbness inside of him, "What if I told you I found Horoem … but he hates me?"

A glare came over Lovino's face, "Why the fuck does he hate you?"

"Well … Lud- … Ludwig is him … I didn't know it when we first met a while back that it was him … but," he frowned lightly, hugging his legs to his chest, void of a special little necklace, "when we stopped to stretch our legs earlier … I slipped down the ditch and Ludwig came tumbling after me. When we hit the bottom of the ditch … ve … I tried to sit up off of him, but got caught … by a matching necklace …" he rubbed away falling tears, "He got mad at me and asked me who gave it to me … I said my true love did and he got angry and pushed away from me, breaking the cord to my necklace. It's Horoem … I just know it … blue eyes, blonde hair … oh Lovi! Ve … I don't know what to do! He hates me, but I love him so much!"

"It's going to be alright, okay? Just … let things be for right now, okay? He'll come around and if he doesn't … then it was never meant to be." Lovino sighed, hugging his brother. The twins mimicked their mama and hugged their uncle as well. Feliciano smiled lightly, but was horrified at the notion of what his brother had said. He shook it away and got up with his sibling to get redressed.

His eyes fell on his brother again, his eyes widened slightly, "Ve~! You have a scar on your belly! And your shoulder!"

Lovino looked over them and a small, warm smile came over his face, "This one is from the naga attack and this is the scar left over from giving birth to Romana and Tristán." he caressed the scar on his belly.

"Ve~!" Feliciano hesitantly reached out and touched the belly scar, "I'd like to have a baby, too!" he wondered if Lovino would set it up to where he could have a baby, too … maybe with Ludwig?

Lovino blushed, "It's not all fun and games!" Feliciano winced, "but I think you'll make a great mama." Feliciano smiled lightly, but knew it probably wouldn't happen.

He helped his brother feed the babies and decided it was time for him to find the room he would be sleeping in and get some sleep. Lovino called to a guard to lead him to his room.

Feliciano hugged Lovino tightly, "Goon night, brother … I love you …"

Lovino frowned lightly, "I love you, too … good night." the younger brother gave him a smile and walked down the hallway.

He made it to the room with no problems and laid down on the bed, suddenly feeling utterly alone lying on the big bed. He had no idea where Elizaveta's bedroom was, so he couldn't go crawl into bed with her.

Not that it mattered. She couldn't kiss the wound to make it better. Subconsciously, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the necklace. There was no way he could stay here. Ludwig was going to be working there, wasn't he? Feliciano tied the broken cord back up and slipped it over his neck. No matter what Ludwig said or did, Feliciano knew his heart still belonged to the blonde man. He grabbed a small pack and grabbed some of the food that had been delivered to his room and filled the pack up. He wiped away the tears and opened up his balcony doors and smiled, "I'm glad you're safe, Lovi …" he began climbing down.

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_~Lady Pyrien_


	7. Chapter 7

_Meh, too caught up in stuff to remember to update this DX ahaha anyway, it's mostly because I have two chapters left to actually write before this is complete and NaNo just started, so ... ugh... have to write, write, write... on one stroy that's not VVUL and Lilou! Reeaaad the author's notes! ahaha I love you! Thanks for reminding me to actually update this... You're all lucky DX I haven't hit my word count for today!_

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**Von Verlust und Liebe**

**Chapter Seven: Realization**

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Ludwig st down in the kitchen with a huge stein of beer, imported stuff, so it was doing its job properly. He's spent all night, sleeplessly sipping at the alcoholic beverage. His eyes burned from lack of sleep and he was slightly drunk from the many beers he'd already downed in the passed several hours.

Gilbert walked in and frowned, "Look at you, West … drinking a bit early, are we?" the older brother patted the blond's shoulder and sat down, "I mean, I love beer as much as Gartyrarren, but seriously … dawn hasn't even broken yet."

"Shut up …" Ludwig glared, "She doesn't love me … I'll never see her again …"

"Who?" Gilbert asked, taking his brother's drink and sipping it himself, "Oh, this is good!" he took another, deeper drink.

The younger knight glared, "Ita! She gave her heart to another already … even gave away the cross, too …" he growled, taking his drink back and taking a large swig.

"Ita?" Gilbert's eyes widened, "Wait … how did you come about this conclusion?"

Ludwig laid his head down on the table and sighed, "I found the pendant I gave her … on _Feliciano_ …" he ground out his 'ex'best friend's name.

Gilbert didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Oh, dearest brother of mine … I thought you were the smart one in our family. Ita … such a sweet young girl, right? White dress … and … blue eyes?"

"No … golden … like honey … her hair was a coppery reddish brown and her skin was lightly tanned … a little curl … on … the … oh god …" Ludwig's eyes shot open and were open wide.

The albino knight said nothing as he stole his brother's drink again. Elizaveta couldn't hurt him if he didn't actually tell his brother what she told him. He was safe and his brother was discovering his sexuality.

"Ita … wasn't a girl … was she?" the Gartyrarren asked his brother.

Gilbert shrugged, "I can't say for sure … did Feliciano tell you where he got his necklace? It could be a big misunderstanding, no?"

"He told me … his love gave it to him …"

Gilbert grinned, fully enjoying his brother's confusion as everything began falling into place, "And, who was this love of his? Did he ever say it was Ita? Or a girl at all?"

Ludwig shook his head, feeling guilt rack his mind and body, "But the dress-"

"West … prince Tristán wears a dress … I asked Toni about it, because I was confused. He told me it was for Lovino. Apparently, in their home village it was traditional for a child to wear a white dress until they came of age. If Lovino had to take part in that tradition, it's only natural his brother would have too … face it West, Ita is Feliciano and you're in love with him."

The puzzle pieces just seemed to fit and he stood up slowly, "I have to find him …"

He took off down the halls, not caring as he bumped into servant on his way to the room he'd seen Feliciano led to the night before. He rubbed the sleepiness from his eyes as he came up to the open bedroom door and burst through.

However, instead of Feliciano, he found Lovino, holding one of his children in his arms and the other wrapped around his leg. The queen turned around and glared, "Where the fuck is he?"

Ludwig looked to the sides, frantically. Feliciano was nowhere to be found and the balcony was left open. A sinking feeling pulled at Ludwig's mind and he bit his lip, already worried.

"I don't know why he ran off, but I'm sure it has something to do with you. I hate you, but for some unknown reason, he loves you!

"I found out last night that you hate my brother? After all he's done for the passed ten years was wait for you! After our grandfather died, did you know that he'd mumble things about how life would be better when his sweet, dear Horoem came back? I imagined a strong, loving husband waiting for my brother, but instead he's saddled with a broken heart and _you_.

"You obviously underestimated my power … I finally got my brother back and then you had to go and ruin it! I've been looked for him for years now and now I have no idea where to look!

"So you know what?" the queen shifted his son in his arms and picked up his daughter, "If you don't find my brother, apologize and bring him back here, I will hunt you down and gut you like the pig you are. And that is a fucking_ promise_." Lovino stormed out of the room behind him.

Ludwig stood in the room, shocked and dumbstruck, still confused and hurt and tired. He looked around the room for any sign of where Feliciano had gone, but with no luck, he was forced to begin searching the streets.

He bid Gilbert farewell and sighed. He had to find him … he had to make things right … a blush crept into his cheeks and he rubbed at them. He spent the next week searching the streets of Sverran, picking up stories here and there about a copper haired Illonian heading up north.

The further up north he went, the harder it was to determine which way his Illonian had run off to. Some people said east, others west, most hadn't seen Feliciano at all. Ludwig hated thinking that the young man had run off anywhere. Ludwig made up a small list of possible place he could have gone and decided the first place he should was Fayldyr. Feliciano seemed to care a great deal about 'big brother Francis' so it only made sense he might go there.

Ludwig sighed and began the journey into Fayldyr.

A week had passed of nearly nonstop walking and running and Ludwig was exhausted, but he finally made it to the capital of the kingdom. People bustled around the streets, for the most part ignoring the Gartyrarren man. They paid very little attention to him and some even snubbed their nose at him.

As he made his way to the castle, he found the people were in a commotion over something. They freaked out and ran around wildly, trying to fix up a massive broken foyer.

Ludwig spotted the king standing in the shattered mess, frowning deeply, "Jeanne really loved that window …" the man sighed, turning to see Ludwig walking up, "How nice of you to be here to see me in my time of need~ to what do I owe this honor?"

The Gartyrarren sighed, already tiring of the whole thing. He was worn and purely exhausted from trying to get to Fayldyr in hope of catching wind of Feliciano. He wanted to sleep, he wanted to eat, he wanted to bathe.

"Just on a journey. You wouldn't by chance have a room I could use for the night, would you? Ludwig tread carefully, not wanting to upset the seemingly distressed man.

Francis sighed, "I do, but my castle isn't quite the safest place in Fayldyr anymore … a snow dragon keeps coming back here and kidnapping people … it started a few years ago on my wedding day and he came back again yesterday … I don't know why he keeps coming here, but he seems to fail easily and when he gets frustrated, the blasted thing takes off with a hostage and leaves a female dragon or two in his wake … it really is quite annoying and my castle is beginning to suffer greatly.

"Lovi won't let me stay with them again, since he seems upset about something and they only just got home not long ago and this, that and the other. Oh well~ feel free to stay as long as you want. Dinner is in a few hours." Francis walked away while his servant cleaned up the mess and tried fixing the walls.

Ludwig took the offer quickly and found himself escorted to a lovely room, decorated in fine silks and luxurious pillows and tapestries depicting Fayldyr's history. He stripped of his old worn clothing and walked into the bathing room, where the water was already waiting for him. Ludwig sighed in relief and immediately wasted no time in sinking into the water.

His sore muscles ached so badly as the water attempted to sooth them. Ludwig leaned back in the water and let his hand caress the pendant on his neck. He hadn't much time to think over the passed several days and now was a good a time as ever.

What would he even say to Feliciano when he saw him? 'Sorry, I thought you were a girl before.' or go on saying he'd actually accused him of being unfaithful … even if he did think his Ita was a girl. And where did he stand on that subject? Could he still be with Feliciano even then? Where he was from men and women didn't often marry the same gender as themselves. They fooled around on occasion, but marriage had been something only man and wife took on. He didn't really know if the same sex could marry since he'd never really considered marriage.

Feliciano was certainly attractive … and sweet … and caring. He fit the bill of a 'wife', at least the definition of one where he was from. Lovino seemed to make a piss poor wife for his husband, but maybe that was because he wasn't a girl?

Ludwig groaned in the confusion he was laying on himself. He'd mentioned just the other night when Feliciano asked that seemingly silly question that a promise was to be kept and he'd promised to marry Ita … but did he still feel that way about Feliciano now that he knew they were the same person?

He closed his eyes and chose to forget these things and just focus on finding the Illonian. His bath came to an end once he figured he was thoroughly clean and he dressed in the clothing he'd been supplied with. It was honestly too fancy for his tastes and left his important vital spots open for attack.

However, the clothing he came in was far too worn to of any more help than the silks he wore now.

The man made his way down to the dinner hall, where he supposed he should be if he wanted to appease his gracious host. The halls of the castle were decorated beautifully, and a little too extravagant for Ludwig's tastes, but so far, everything here was.

Dinner was already being served when Ludwig walked inside the room, but only a few people sat at the table. A few young women, one wearing her hair in a braid over her shoulder, another obviously foreign girl with tanned skin and dark hair. A man … or rather … fairy, sitting with a child in his lap. Francis sat at the head of the table, "Ah, Ludwig, my guest, come, have a seat and enjoy the wonderful meal I've had laid out for us."

Ludwig nodded and took a seat. The child sitting in the blond man's lap looked at him with bright blue eyes.

"That is my gorgeous little daughter, Jeanne the second, but we call her Jay for short." Francis explained.

"Oh, she … looks just like you …?" Ludwig commented, slightly awkward. He didn't know what one should say in a situation.

Francis laughed, much to the confusion of the people around him who apparently didn't speak Gartyrarren, "No, no … she looks just like her mother … by the way," he said, lightening the mood a bit, "This is Mattie, Chelles and Monica. The first two are my faithful servants and Monica is a diplomat from a smaller kingdom south of here by the sea. They don't speak Gartyrarren, but Mattie can speak Evennian, Fayldyren and Sverran~ isn't that just amazing of him? Chelles can speak Evennian and Fayldyren."

Ludwig frowned. He only knew a small bit of Evennian since that and Gartyrarren were so similar. He knew only a little bit of Fayldyren and it's only what few phrases he'd picked up in his days of traveling through the kingdom.

Dinner was silent, and slightly awkward with a toddler staring at him the entire meal and no one understood a word he said except for Francis and he wasn't a very fun conversational partner.

He gripped his fork and swallowed hard, dreading the question that he'd been holding at the tip of his tongue for a while now. Ludwig frowned, "Your majesty-"

"Please, call me Francis, or big brother~ we're practically family!"

The notion scared Ludwig, but he pressed on, "Francis … you wouldn't have, by chance, seen Feliciano … have you? Has he been through here?"

Francis fell silent and stared at his plate, guilt ridden, "Actually … he was here … poor thing showed up on my doorstep utterly confused, lost and starving … I fed and clothed him, took him in and then … that dragon attacked … Feli was his hostage this time … I'm afraid … we're never going to see him again."

Ludwig frowned, feeling anger and rage bubbling up, "What do you mean by that? We just go to Ryven and find the snow dragon that took him."

"Ludwig … I know the king of Evenna quite well … he had gone on a journey with me across the sea to Alverynia. There, we discovered land and Mattie and his twin brother, Alfred. Both were irresistible and we each took one as a servant.

"Mattie came with me and Alfred with Arthur." Mattie, who had no idea what they were actually saying, shifted uncomfortably at the mention of his brother's name. He rose from the table, taking Jay with him.

"Arthur had been invited to my wedding some years ago, but the reception had been crashed by this same dragon. His hostage was Alfred. Arthur has been searching for years and with all of his resources, he has yet to find the dragon that kidnapped his servant. Alfred was presumed dead a few months ago, but Arthur has not given up hope. I'd say speak with him and get what he knows. Ryven is a very large wasteland of nothing but snow dragons, ice fairies, and blizzards … it would take you years upon years to search all of it … if you didn't die first."

Ludwig stood up and sighed, "Then I guess I'll be off in the morning to Evenna. Thank you for your hospitality." he growled lightly, heading back to his room.

* * *

_~ Lady Pyrien_


End file.
